KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 3 — Nikkei Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) released today showed that Malaysian manufacturers recorded an improvement in business conditions last month after seven months of decline.

This reflected growth in new orders for the first time in seven months and a faster rise in output. On the price front, input cost inflation eased to the slowest since February 2015.

PMI recorded for the month of August rose from 49.7 in July to 51.2 in August.

Any score above 50 denotes an expansion.

The latest reading pointed to a modest improvement in manufacturing conditions across Malaysia, ending a seven-month period of deterioration. The upward movement in the headline PMI index was driven by a rise in new orders for the first time in seven months during August.

"Some respondents also mentioned that customers placed their orders before the Sales and Service Tax (SST) takes effect,” said Nikkei in a statement.

Nikkei also said that firms raised their staffing levels for the third month in succession during August.

Input costs facing Malaysian manufacturers rose during August. Where an increase was reported, firms commented on currency weakness. However, the rate of inflation was marginal and eased to the slowest since February 2015.

Nikkei also said looking ahead, business sentiment towards the 12-month outlook was the strongest in four months during August.

Positive forecasts of sales and an expected improvement in demand conditions were the key factors behind optimistic projections for output, according to anecdotal evidence.