Page 34 - RUSRptOct18

4.3 Industrial sectors and trade 4.3.1 Producers PMI
The latest IHS Markit manufacturing PMI for August was slightly up m/m to 48.9 from 48.1 in July, but still below the 50 no-change mark, the consultant said on September 4.
The result underlines the fragile nature of the economic recovery that has hurt industrial producers, although service providers have been doing much better and have been keeping the composite PMI index in the black for this year.
“The downturn was driven by marginal falls in both output and new orders. Consequently, both employment and backlogs declined further amid reduced pressure on capacity. Exports, however, rebounded from July's slight fall, rising at the quickest pace since April. On the price front, rates of both input cost and output charge inflation accelerated,” Markit said in a press release.
Russia’s IHS Markit services PMI rose to a three month high in August of 53.3, up from 52.8 a month earlier and well ahead of the 50 no-change benchmark, Markit said in a press release on September 6.
The rising services PMI has also lifted the composite index that includes manufacturing which was also up to 52.1 in August from 51.7 in July.
The overall index has been held back as the manufacturing PMI continues to be underwater . The difference reflects to some extent the changing nature of the Russian economy and the boom in e-commerce that is also pulling down footfall traffic in Moscow’s leading shopping malls, according to the Watcom Shopping index .
However, Russia’s headline industrial production numbers were up to 3.9% in July from 2.2% a month earlier suggesting that the recovery is still underway.
But the services sector remains the star of Russia’s economy. The August data signalled a solid rise in business activity across the Russian service sector and the rate of growth accelerated to a three month high, according to
34 RUSSIA Country Report October 2018 www.intellinews.com