Turkey: Manufacturing PMI rises in March
The Istanbul Chamber of Industry Turkey Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) rose to 52.6 in March from 51.7 in February. Moreover, the index remained above the neutral 50-threshold that separates an overall expansion from contraction in business activity for the 10th month running.
March’s uptick was driven by a return to growth in new orders and sustained increases in output and employment. New orders growth came on the back of improved demand dynamics, with export orders rising for the third successive month. Greater production requirement in part drove the 10th consecutive monthly increase in employment. However, while output increased for the third month in a row, the pace of expansion was held back by raw material supply shortages as suppliers’ delivery times lengthened. Turning to prices, supply shortages and currency depreciation contributed to the fastest rise in input costs in the year-to-date. In turn, output prices rose at the strongest pace since December last year.
Andrew Harker, economics director at IHS Markit, commented:
“The increasingly familiar problem of difficulties obtaining raw materials affected suppliers’ delivery times, inventories and input costs, while acting to restrict growth of production.”