Kazakhstan's manufacturing sector signalled further improving conditions in February, continuing the trend seen in December, according to the latest purchasing managers' index (PMI) survey data from Tengri Partners and S&P Global.

The index in February rose above the “no change” mark of 50.0 posted in January, registering a score of 51.2.

The demand for goods and services in Kazakhstan improved in February, resulting in the growth of new orders and purchasing activity, and a positive outlook for the year ahead, according to the new survey. Despite slight falls in production and employment, there were indications of building pressure on capacity as backlogs of work increased.

While input cost inflation remained high, it was softer than in most of 2022 due to a stronger tenge against the Russian rouble. Output prices also rose at the slowest pace since December 2020.

Anuar Ushbayev, managing partner and chief investment officer at Tengri Partners said: "The key highlight from the latest PMI survey was an acceleration in the pace of new order growth. With demand having improved over a sustained period we should be very close to seeing production volumes respond accordingly, particularly given that firms are now seeing their backlogs of work build up.

"Price and supply pressures are much more benign than they were in 2022, but logistics disruption and raw material costs still provide something of a headwind to the full recovery of the sector.”