MOSCOW--Russia's manufacturing sector continued to contact in February as operating conditions deteriorated further, a Markit survey of purchasing managers showed Tuesday.
The headline Purchasing Managers' Index for the manufacturing sector declined to 49.3 in February from 49.8 in January, remaining below the 50 level that separates growth from contraction for the third month in a row.
"Russian manufacturing sector conditions remain in a fragile state," Samuel Agass, economist at Markit, said in the monthly PMI report.
Growth in new orders in the manufacturing sector was driven my domestic demand, while new export orders dropped at their highest rate in 19 months.
Meanwhile, output prices continued to rise in February, which poll participants said was driven by rising input costs.
Hit by a drop in oil prices and Western sanctions, Russia's economy is still in recession despite comments from some top officials that the economy has bottomed out.
"With both low oil prices and the instability of the ruble also acting as factors for concern, the upcoming months look set to be challenging for the sector," Mr. Agass said.
Write to Andrey Ostroukh at andrey.ostroukh@wsj.com
