Egypt's business activity grows for first time in 14 months

Egyptian business activity returned to growth in November, putting an end to a 13-month downturn as the country moves towards a constitutional referendum and elections, a survey showed on Wednesday.

In mid-November Egypt lifted a nighttime curfew that had lasted three months after security forces broke up sit-ins in support of President Mohamed Mursi, deposed by the army on July 3 following mass protests against his rule.

Hundreds of people have died in clashes between security forces and Mursi supporters since he was ousted.

The seasonally adjusted HSBC Egypt Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) for the non-oil private sector rose to 52.5 points in November, up from 49.5 points in October, stepping above the 50 mark separating growth from contraction.

That marked the strongest improvement in operating conditions since the survey of around 350 private sector firms began 32 months ago.

"The November survey gives us the first concrete evidence that the real economy has started to find its feet," Simon Williams, chief Middle East economist at HSBC, said in an accompanying statement.

"It will take time to reverse the heavy losses of the past year, and many difficult challenges lie ahead. But provided political order holds, I'm hopeful recovery will gradually pick up steam."