Maldives Monetary Authority (MMA) has revealed that businesses in all sectors apart from the tourism sector recorded progress during the second quarter of 2022.
In the latest Quarterly Business Survey, MMA stated businesses in all the sectors in the survey, except for the tourism sector, reported an expansion in activity in the second quarter. The authority stated that it reflected the end of the off-peak season and that businesses in the tourism sector are slightly optimistic about future activity in the third quarter, as indicated by the rise in expected total revenue and resort booking indices.
Additionally, MMA stated that employment levels remained positive in the second quarter, despite experiencing a moderation in the pace of hiring for businesses in all the sectors in the survey, except for the tourism sector, where the employment index markedly declined and turned negative. It added that businesses in the construction sector continued to remain optimistic as indicated by the positive readings for expected indices for the volume of construction activity and orders received. In addition, businesses in the wholesale and retail trade sector expect further improvements in future business activity.
The Quarterly Business Survey is carried out by MMA with the aim of obtaining a quick assessment of current business trends and expected future economic activity. The respondents of the business survey are senior managers or top management of businesses in the sectors of tourism, construction, wholesale, retail, transport, and communication. The questions cover the views of the senior management, for the past quarter and expectations for the next quarter, on the direction of change in various business variables such as sales, output, prices, capacity utilisation, and employment which are useful for analysing and predicting economic activity.