Page 20 - IRANRptSep20

PMI for Iran falls into contraction territory
A purchasing managers’ index (PMI) provided by the Iran Chamber gives the Islamic Republic a reading of 45.79 in the fifth Persian calendar month (ended August 22) compared to 50.07 in the preceding month and 50.66 in the month before that.
With any figure below 50 indicating a contraction, the decline in the PMI figures can only be taken as another indication of the deleterious heavy sanctions campaign being waged against Iran by the US. Credit inside the country remains tight for lending, meanwhile, and the long hot summer in Iran is said to have hit demand across multiple sectors, impacting many factories.
Iran Chamber (full name Iran Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines and Agriculture) publishes PMI data for industry overall and 12 of its subfields. It has plans to expand its PMI coverage to sectors including agriculture at a later date.
During the fifth calendar month, plastic and rubber production in Iran posted the highest PMI registering 56.3. Wood, paper and furnishings posted the lowest score, at 35.9.
Looking at index components, output and new and contributed to the month-on-month decrease in the headline PMI figure, while suppliers' delivery times and employment scores improved.
The reading for exports in the fifth month fell from to 44.65 from 46.84.
4.3 ​Labour and income
4.3.1​ Labour market, unemployment dynamics
Iranian workers strike amid wage payment delays
Iranian oil and gas workers began industrial action on August 1 following delays to wage payments.
According to local media, all workers went on strike at the Abadan, Parsian and Qeshm refineries, the Lamerd petrochemical complex and South Pars gas field facilities, demanding the implementation of the job-classification law as well as overdue pay and benefits.
Radio Farda quoted contractors at Qeshm refinery as saying that their employers had failed to pay them regularly.
Meanwhile, the industrial action adds to the growing tension at Abadan refinery, where workers have protested in recent months. At complexes in Assaluyeh dedicated to phases 22 and 24 of South Pars workers have gone on strike again, with industrial action having been taken several times there over the past three years.
Despite the widespread discontent, the state-owned Iran Labor News Agency (ILNA) quoted a director at Qeshm as saying that workers are seeking raises, adding that there are no issues with overdue wage payments.
That Iranian industry is struggling to pay the bills is not surprising given the multiple challenges of sanctions, soft oil demand and the impact of coronavirus (COVID-19).
However, the country’s oil and gas sector has in recent weeks sought to
20​ IRAN Country Report September 2020 www.intellinews.com