Markit: Russia’s Manufacturing PMI rises to 52.8 in March

MOSCOW, Apr 1 (PRIME) -- Russia’s Manufacturing purchasing managers' index (PMI) rose to 52.8 in March from 50.1 in February, staying above the 50 no-change mark, researcher IHS Markit said in a research note on Monday.

“The seasonally adjusted IHS Markit Russia Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ IndexTM(PMI) – a composite single-figure snapshot of the performance of the manufacturing economy – registered 52.8 in March, up from 50.1 in February. The latest headline figure signaled the fastest improvement in operating conditions across the Russian manufacturing sector since January 2017,” the report said.

Solid overall growth was supported by a strong rise in production at Russian goods producers in March. The rate of expansion accelerated notably, and was the quickest since July 2017.

“Russian manufacturers signaled a significant uptick in domestic demand and production in March, indicating a solid end to the first quarter of 2019 following relatively lacklustre growth in February. Rates of new order and output growth accelerated, supporting an improvement in business confidence which reached a series high,” Markit said quoting Economist Sian Jones.

“The ongoing impact of the recent hike in VAT and higher supplier costs continued to push input prices up. In response, firms raised factory gate charges sharply.”

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