MOSCOW: Russian manufacturing activity expanded in March at around the same pace as in February, as output and new orders rose, the Markit purchasing managers’ index (PMI) showed on Monday. The index’s headline reading dipped to 52.4 from 52.5 in the previous month, staying above the 50.0 mark that separates expansion from contraction.
“The latest PMI data suggest that the sector will contribute to overall economic growth this year,” said Sian Jones, an economist at IHS Markit, which compiles the survey. “Domestic demand has proved strong so far in 2017, though weak goods exports remain a concern.” The PMI survey found that optimism in the manufacturing sector reached a 22-month high in March. But new export orders and employment fell. Russia’s economy is expected to grow this year by up to 2 percent after two consecutive years of contraction. So far the recovery has been unevenly spread across individual sectors.
