Russia's manufacturing sector continued to contract in February, but the rate of decline has been slowing for the second consecutive month, Reuters reports. The PMI business activity index rose to 49.5 after 49.4 in January, the agency notes, citing data from S&P Global. An index value below 50 points indicates a decline, above - growth.
Manufacturing orders stopped declining for the first time in eight months. Companies noticed a slight interest from customers, but demand still remains at a low level. The situation with international sales has worsened, Reuters claims: the number of new export orders decreased faster than in January.
The growth of prices for raw materials and goods slowed down in February after a sharp January surge due to the VAT increase.
According to the agency, employment in the industry has been falling for the third month, and the rate of layoffs accelerated to a maximum since June 2025.