Turkish factory activity ekes out growth in January - PMI

ISTANBUL, Feb 1 (Reuters) - Turkish factory activity expanded very slightly in January after shrinking for 10 straight months, although both output and new orders continued to contract, a business survey showed on Wednesday. The Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) for manufacturing rose to 50.1 last month from 48.1 in December, inching above the 50-point line that separates expansion from contraction, the Istanbul Chamber of Industry and S&P Global said. Some firms contributing to the survey pointed to some improvement in demand, although it remained fragile amid price rises, while output and new orders both shrank, albeit at a much slower rate than in December. Employment increased for the third month running, enabling firms to reduce backlogs of work, the panel showed. Input cost inflation rose sharply in January largely as a result of a rise in the minimum wage, the survey showed, with higher material costs and currency weakness also putting a burden on manufacturers. In turn, firms increased their own prices, with the rate of output price inflation accelerating to a seven-month high. "Business conditions were stable in January, while the upward trajectories of the output and new orders indices amid signs of demand improving provide hope that expansions can be recorded in the coming months,"said Andrew Harker, economics director at S&P Global Market Intelligence. "While rates of input cost and output price inflation did pick up due to the rise in the minimum wage, they remained some way below the highest points seen in 2021 and 2022." (Reporting by Ezgi Erkoyun; Editing by Hugh Lawson)