Turkish industrial production tumbled 5.1 percent year-on-year in February, official data showed on Tuesday, marking a sixth month of declines but with a month-on-month rise in output offering the first indication of economic turnaround.
The economy contracted 3 percent year-on-year in the last quarter of 2018, its worst performance in nearly a decade, and economists expect two more quarters of contraction year-on-year.
Data has shown economic activity remains mostly weak.
In a Reuters poll, calendar-adjusted industrial output was forecast to fall 6.5 percent year-on-year in February.
The month-on-month picture was more upbeat, with industrial production rising 1.3 percent in February on a calendar and seasonally adjusted basis, the Turkish Statistical Institute (TUIK) said.
Finance Minister Berat Albayrak said Turkey's economy had weathered its most difficult period with "mininum damage", broadcaster NTV reported after the figures were released.
With retail data also showing rising sales, the economy may have expanded 0.5-0.8 percent quarter-on-quarter, said Capital Economics chief emerging markets economist William Jackson.
"That said, the recovery is likely to be slow from here on. Activity in Q1 was probably boosted by pre-election stimulus, which is likely to fade. And financial conditions tightened towards the end of last month," he added.
Retail sales volume decreased 4.9 percent year-on-year in February, having fallen 6.3 percent a month earlier, but volumes rose 0.8 percent month-on-month, TUIK data showed.
The lira firmed slightly to 5.7950 against the dollar before easing again. The lira has lost nearly 9 percent of its value in 2019, extending a 30 percent slide last year on concerns about the economic slowdown and political uncertainty.
The bleak economic picture was reinforced on Monday by data which showed unemployment surging to its highest rate in nearly a decade while the budget deficit was higher than expected. Albayrak, who last week announced measures to boost the economy, held talks on Monday with US President Donald Trump and said Trump took a reasonable stance regarding Turkey's planned purchase of Russian air defence systems - a key source of strain between the two countries.
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