Manufacturing in China expanded last month after contracting for five consecutive months, an official survey of factory managers released yesterday showed, suggesting a rebound in industrial activities following the Lunar New Year holiday.
The official purchasing managers’ index (PMI) rose from 49.1 in February to 50.8 last month. The index is on a scale up to 100, where 50 marks the cutoff between expansion and contraction.
The monthly manufacturing PMI has mostly been less than 50 over the past 12 months: Other than this month, factory activities only recorded an expansion in September last year.
Photo: EPA-EFE
Chinese National Bureau of Statistics senior statistician Zhao Qinghe (趙清河) said the market became more active as companies resumed and sped up production after the Lunar New Year holiday.
The survey also showed that some problems for companies remained, including increasing competition in industries and a lack of market demand, Zhao said.
During the annual session of the Chinese National People’s Congress last month, Beijing said it would encourage consumers to scrap old appliances and trade in their cars for electric vehicles to help spur domestic demand.
It also said that 10.4 billion yuan (US$1.46 billion) would go to upgrading industries and modernizing manufacturing.
The policies promoting the trade-ins of consumer goods and large-scale equipment upgrades still needed further implementation to support the high-quality development of the manufacturing industry, Zhao said.
The nonmanufacturing PMI rose to 53 from 51.4 in February, the survey showed.
The reading is the highest since June last year.
The better-than-expected manufacturing PMI “reflects signs that the economy is stabilizing” despite seasonal factors and a low base of comparison from the Lunar New Year holiday, Jones Lang Lasalle Inc chief economist for Greater China Bruce Pang (龐溟) said.
The nonmanufacturing PMI also shows that “companies have relatively strong confidence and expectations for future business,” he said.
The recovery of the world’s second-largest economy following the shocks of the pandemic faced many obstacles, one of the largest being a downturn in the real-estate industry after authorities moved to curb excess borrowing by property developers.
The Chinese Communist Party’s target is to grow the economy by about 5 percent this year, an ambition that economists say might be hard to attain.
NOT JUSTIFIED: The bank’s governor said there would only be a rate cut if inflation falls below 1.5% and economic conditions deteriorate, which have not been detected The central bank yesterday kept its key interest rates unchanged for a fifth consecutive quarter, aligning with market expectations, while slightly lowering its inflation outlook amid signs of cooling price pressures. The move came after the US Federal Reserve held rates steady overnight, despite pressure from US President Donald Trump to cut borrowing costs. Central bank board members unanimously voted to maintain the discount rate at 2 percent, the secured loan rate at 2.375 percent and the overnight lending rate at 4.25 percent. “We consider the policy decision appropriate, although it suggests tightening leaning after factoring in slackening inflation and stable GDP growth,”
DIVIDED VIEWS: Although the Fed agreed on holding rates steady, some officials see no rate cuts for this year, while 10 policymakers foresee two or more cuts There are a lot of unknowns about the outlook for the economy and interest rates, but US Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell signaled at least one thing seems certain: Higher prices are coming. Fed policymakers voted unanimously to hold interest rates steady at a range of 4.25 percent to 4.50 percent for a fourth straight meeting on Wednesday, as they await clarity on whether tariffs would leave a one-time or more lasting mark on inflation. Powell said it is still unclear how much of the bill would fall on the shoulders of consumers, but he expects to learn more about tariffs
Greek tourism student Katerina quit within a month of starting work at a five-star hotel in Halkidiki, one of the country’s top destinations, because she said conditions were so dire. Beyond the bad pay, the 22-year-old said that her working and living conditions were “miserable and unacceptable.” Millions holiday in Greece every year, but its vital tourism industry is finding it harder and harder to recruit Greeks to look after them. “I was asked to work in any department of the hotel where there was a need, from service to cleaning,” said Katerina, a tourism and marketing student, who would
i Gasoline and diesel prices at fuel stations are this week to rise NT$0.1 per liter, as tensions in the Middle East pushed crude oil prices higher last week, CPC Corp, Taiwan (台灣中油) and Formosa Petrochemical Corp (台塑石化) said yesterday. International crude oil prices last week rose for the third consecutive week due to an escalating conflict between Israel and Iran, as the market is concerned that the situation in the Middle East might affect crude oil supply, CPC and Formosa said in separate statements. Front-month Brent crude oil futures — the international oil benchmark — rose 3.75 percent to settle at US$77.01
RSS