(Corrects to remove extraneous word in headline)
ISTANBUL, March 1 (Reuters) - Turkish factory activity
expanded very slightly in February as massive earthquakes
impacted the sector as some firms suspended production resulting
in a slowdown in output and orders, a business survey showed on
Wednesday.
Turkey's Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) for manufacturing
stood at 50.1 last month unchanged from January, staying above
the 50-point line that separates expansion from contraction, the
Istanbul Chamber of Industry and S&P Global said.
Supplier lead times lengthened to the greatest extent in 10
months as the earthquake caused difficulties in the sourcing and
delivery of components, the panel said.
Output and new orders moderated due to the earthquake that
killed 44,000 in the country, the panel said adding that
suspended production lines and difficulties sourcing items led
manufacturers to scale back their purchasing activity.
Input prices rose due to increases in raw material costs and
wages, plus currency weakness, and output prices rose in turn,
the survey showed.
"The terrible earthquake in February impacted the Turkish
manufacturing sector during the month, with supply chains and
production lines affected in particular," said Andrew Harker,
economics director at S&P Global Market Intelligence.
"Hopefully we will see signs of recovery in the affected
areas and across the sector as a whole in the months ahead."
(Reporting by Ezgi Erkoyun; Editing by Susan Fenton)
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