Iran’s new PMI data for the fiscal month of Bahman (January 21 – February 19), released by the country’s Chamber of Commerce improved from a five-month low in the previous month.
The Purchasing Managers’ Index, known by its Farsi acronym Shamekh, for Iran’s overall economy has risen from 46.94 in the previous month to settle at 51.55 in Bahman.
The Statistics and Economic Analysis Center of Iran Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines and Agriculture, the sponsor and coordinator of the survey, announces the whole economy PMI data in a report every month.
The headline PMI is a number from 0 to 100, such that over 50 shows an expansion of the economy when compared with the previous month. A PMI reading under 50 indicates contraction and a reading of 50 implies no change.
PMI is an index of the prevailing direction of economic trends, aiming to provide information about business conditions to company directors, analysts and purchasing managers.
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Except for “new order” and “raw material inventory” indices, all the rest main sub-indices were above the threshold in Bahman.
The “business activities” sub-index (55.50) has increased compared to 47.07 in the previous month. The improvement in this sub-index was mainly due to an enhancement of businesses in services and agricultural sectors following a severe drop in the PMI reading of the preceding month.
The “new order” sub-index (47.90) is more than that of the previous month but it continues to remain under the threshold for the fourth month in a row. Orders by many businesses have fell mainly as a result of fluctuations in the forex market and the political atmosphere amid Iran’s talks in Vienna with five world powers – known as P4+1.
The "raw material inventory" sub-index (47.29) in Bahman, gained from that of the previous month but it is still below the threshold for a fifth consecutive month largely as a result of the shortage of liquidity and uncertainty about forex rate.
The PMI reading of “employment” also improved from 49.91 in the previous month to settle at 51.05 in the month under review.