Riyad Bank Index at 55.3 Points Ahead of October Reading on Nov. 3
Key Facts
The Riyad Bank Purchasing Managers’ Index for Saudi Arabia’s non-oil private sector was scheduled for release for October on Nov. 3, 2026, at 04:15 UTC, according to Investing.com’s calendar. The anticipated reading follows a rise in the index to 55.3 points in September from 53.8 points in August, marking the strongest improvement in business conditions since February, according to Arab News. Markets are awaiting the new reading after the index rebounded in September, while weakness in foreign orders persisted. The index measures conditions in the non-oil private sector, while gross domestic product figures reflect broader economic activity. No confirmed October reading or documented details on its components are available in the information provided.
New orders rose at their fastest pace since February in September, according to Arab News, pointing to stronger domestic demand for non-oil companies’ products and services. But foreign orders fell for a seventh consecutive month, leaving external demand weaker than domestic activity. This divergence puts September’s reading in the context of an expansion supported by new orders, alongside continued declines in business from abroad. The source did not specify the increase in orders or the scale of the fall in foreign orders. These data alone also do not establish whether the trend in external demand changed in October.
Preliminary gross domestic product data showed non-oil activities grew 1.9% year over year in the third quarter of 2026, despite a 3.8% contraction in real GDP, according to Saudi Gazette. The annual contraction was attributed in part to a 20.4% decline in oil activities and a 2.7% fall in government activities compared with the third quarter of 2025. Non-oil activities therefore moved in a different direction from the economy’s overall figure during the quarter. This comparison concerns GDP and does not represent or replace the Purchasing Managers’ Index reading. The source described the GDP estimates as preliminary, as they are released shortly after the end of the reference quarter.
Quarter over quarter, seasonally adjusted real GDP rose 1.3% in the third quarter of 2026. The increase included a 5.7% rise in oil activity and 0.6% growth in non-oil activities, while government activities fell 1.2%, according to Saudi Gazette. These quarterly rates differ from the annual changes, which showed a contraction in overall GDP and growth in non-oil activities. This offers a more detailed view of sector trends without conflating the quarterly comparison with the change from the same quarter a year earlier. The next index release on the calendar is scheduled for Nov. 3 at 04:15 UTC, with September’s 55.3 points recorded as the previous reading.