That is, in the corporate sector, profits marked a record high, and an increase in fixed investment is becoming clear. In the household sector, wages have been growing, as seen in the raise in base pay for two consecutive years, and private consumption has been resilient.
Meanwhile, global commodity prices have weakened, with collateral benefits to net commodity importers and terms of trade losses for commodity exporters. The developments emanating from drone strikes on Saudi oil facilities are, however, still playing out.