PMI falls to 51.6 from 53.5 in April Operating conditions saw their second biggest improvement in 10 months DUBAI: The non-oil private sector economy in Dubai expanded for a sixth straight month in May, but at the slowest pace since the current expansion began, according to IHS Markit. The seasonally adjusted IHS Markit Dubai Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) fell to 51.6 in May, after posting a 17-month high of 53.5 in April. Readings above 50 indicate expanstion. However, this still signaled the second quickest improvement in operating conditions for 10 months, IHS said on Wednesday. While output and new business both grew to a lesser extent, employment decreased, according to the survey of about 600 purchasing managers. "Softer rises in both output and new orders led companies to reduce their staffing levels in the latest survey period,” IHS Markit Economist David Owen wrote in the report. “The fall in employment was the second recorded in three months, but only slight overall.” The survey covers the Dubai non-oil private sector economy, with additional sector data published for travel and tourism, wholesale and retail, and construction.