Manufacturing index at 46.8 points in April

ANKARA- Anadolu Agency

Turkey's Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) for the manufacturing sector came in at 46.8 points in April due to slower output and purchasing activity, according to a closely watched business survey released on May 2.  

An Istanbul Chamber of Industry PMI Manufacturing Index report done in cooperation with IHS Markit last month slipped 0.4 points from March, showing that market conditions remain challenging for Turkish manufacturers.     

"The slowdown was the thirteenth in as many months, albeit less marked than the average over this period," the report said.     

New orders continued to moderate, leading to slower output and purchasing activity while employment was broadly stable, the report showed.     

The rise in input costs was the sharpest since last October due to the weakness of the Turkish lira particularly against the U.S. dollar, according to the firms participating in the survey.     

PMI for the manufacturing sector is seen as an important gauge in tracking the health of the sector, with values below 50 points showing contraction while above indicates expansion.