Uganda’s PMI drops to 34.9 in June amid COVID-19 lockdown

Uganda’s Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) fell from 56.5 in May to 34.9 in June due to lockdown measures.

The measures were aimed at slowing down the surge of COVID-19 cases, a bank reported on Wednesday.

The new reading in the monthly report, issued by Stanbic Bank Uganda, signalled the deterioration in Uganda’s business conditions for the first time in five months, which was below the series average of 52.8.

The threshold of 50 is a baseline to indicate an increase or decline of business conditions.

The report showed that the lockdown impacted a range of indicators across the private sector.

Falling customer numbers meant a lack of new orders and business activity also declined.

There is hope that business activity will rebound once the lockdown measures are lifted, supporting optimism in the 12-month outlook, it said.

The survey, however, also warned that if lockdown measures are tightened, they could delay the rebound in economic activity.

On June 18, Uganda imposed a 42-day lockdown to reduce the rate of transmission of COVID-19. The country was registering an average of over 1,000 COVID-19 cases per day, according to the Ministry of Health.

(NAN)