UPDATE 2 - Turkey’s manufacturing PMI hits 53.9 in June

ADDS REMARKS FROM INDUSTRY AND TECHNOLOGY MINISTER

By Tuba Sahin

ANKARA (AA) - Turkey’s Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) for the manufacturing sector hit 53.9 in June, ending a three-month period of moderation, a joint business survey revealed Wednesday.

The Istanbul Chamber of Industry report prepared in cooperation with London-based global data firm IHS Markit said the June reading, up from 40.9 in May, was above 50.0 or no-change level for the first time since February, thanks to easing of COVID-19 related restrictions.

"A return to near-normality amid the lifting of COVID-19 restrictions enabled manufacturers to expand their production volumes at a marked pace during June," read the report.

Turkey's Industry and Technology Minister Mustafa Varank said the June figure was the highest since February 2018.

In a tweet, he said: "We have left behind other countries as evident from June's figures."

He underlined that the manufacturing industry was gaining momentum in the transition to the "new normal".

Indicators for new orders, output and employment registered a month-on-month rise in June, the survey showed.

New orders returned growth, but the rise in new business from abroad was slow-paced.

Higher output requirements led to expansions in both employment and purchasing activity over the month, it noted.

The report underlined that input costs rose sharply for Turkish manufacturers due to currency weakness.

Commenting on the data, Andrew Harker, economics director at IHS Markit, stressed that much more will be needed in coming months to recover the output lost during the worst of the pandemic.

"We would hope therefore to see growth strengthen further in the months ahead,” Harker said.