Turkish PMI falls to 48.1 due to virus outbreak

Turkey's Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) was at 48.1 this March, down from 52.4 in February, posting below the 50 no-change mark for the first time in three months.

According to the Istanbul Chamber of Industry PMI Manufacturing Index report, prepared in cooperation with global data firm IHS Markit, output and new orders both softened, while firms scaled back purchasing activity.

"On a positive note, employment continued to increase," the report said.

Difficulties in the sector were overwhelmingly attributed to the coronavirus outbreak, which resulted in moderations of both output and new orders, it said.

"Production softened for the first time in five months, while the easing in new business ended a two-month sequence of expansion," it added.

"Despite slower workloads, manufacturers in Turkey continued to take on additional staff during March," it said, adding that employment rose for the third month running, in some cases due to improving new order inflows in previous months.

Meanwhile, Turkey's exports are expected to drop around 17 percent in March, Trade Minister Ruhsar Pekcan said on April 1. Exports to Iran declined by 82 percent, those to Iraq by 48 percent, to France by 32.5 percent and to Germany by 14 percent, she added.