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Investing.com -- Zambia’s private sector showed continued growth in November, with the Stanbic Bank Zambia PMI rising to 51.3 from 50.8 in October, according to data released Wednesday.
The latest reading signals a marginal improvement in business conditions and remains above the long-run series average of 48.9, indicating sustained economic expansion.
New business at Zambian companies increased for another month, though the pace of growth slowed to a three-month low. Companies reported sustained demand conditions and new customer acquisitions supporting this growth.
Despite the overall positive trend, business activity declined for the second consecutive month, primarily due to power supply issues and load shedding. However, the rate of contraction eased and was described as only marginal.
Employment growth was a bright spot in the report, with Zambian firms increasing their hiring at the fastest pace since January 2018. This hiring surge appears to be an effort to mitigate operational challenges and handle incoming new business.
"The private sector showed a modest improvement in business conditions in November," said Musenge Komeki, Head of Sales at Stanbic Bank. "Overall growth was supported by greater new orders and the fastest employment increase since early 2018, but output fell slightly for a second month running, in part due to power shortages."
Among the sectors monitored, agriculture was the only one to register increases in both output and new orders. The construction and services segments recorded growth in new orders but not in output.
Input costs rose at the fastest rate since May, driven by higher fuel and electricity prices, along with increased labor costs. Despite rising costs, companies continued to reduce their selling prices slightly to stimulate sales.
Business confidence for the year ahead remained positive but dipped to its lowest level since January, suggesting some caution about future conditions.
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