The Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) compiled by Standard Bank and under the tutelage of IHS Markit, concluded that business activity in Mozambique remained positive for the third consecutive month, due to a significant increase in demand in the private sector. However, new job opportunities remain very scarce.

"The PMI indicator declined to 52.0 in November, contrasting with the 52.1 recorded in October, while still indicating improved operating conditions across the private sector economy," reads the document consulted by MZNews.

This record, according to the report, is the third best since the onset of the covid-19 pandemic, which has been preying negatively on economies.

The document states that new business had a rapid and greater expansion in the month of November, compared to the month of June, which led to an increase in the level of business confidence.

"We saw strong growth in new business in November - which is expected to continue to expand over the next year - but a slowdown in employment growth," the Standard Bank document highlights.

The new companies evaluated pointed out that the stabilization of their business was due to the increase in their customer base amidst the pandemic.

"Confidence in future production grew to the highest level in four months," the document states.

In terms of the number of people employed, "the rate of job creation fell to its lowest level in the last seven months", which does not mean that there was a lack of new hirings. Therefore, the biggest growth in this aspect occurred in the second quarter of the year.

"While some companies have increased labor capacity to cope with increased demand, others have indicated that pandemic-related problems have given rise to lower employment numbers," it reads.

New hires registered different levels of entries, with construction, wholesale and retail trade, and services registering an increase, while agriculture and manufacturing registered a decline.

Standard Bank Mozambique's PMI is compiled by IHS Markit from responses to questionnaires sent to purchasing managers from a panel of about 400 private sector companies.