China's manufacturing activity improved for the third straight month in September despite impacts of COIVD-19 lockdown in some cities and decreased Chinese currency against the dollar.
In September, the Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) for the manufacturing sector stood at 50.1, up from 49.4 in August, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said on September 30.
A reading below 50 suggests a contraction in activity, while one above that level indicates expansion.
The increase suggested a package of incentive policies played out and the manufacturing activity rebounded with the temperature cooling off.
Entering a golden season, manufactures expanded production with the subindex up to 51.5 from 49.8 a month earlier, led by sectors such as food, beverage, medicine, mineral and general equipment manufacturing.
But the subindex of new orders remained below the 50 points at 49.8, despite up from 49.2 in August, suggesting the demand remained weak.
The subindex surveying large firms kept expansion in September, rising to 51.1 from 50.4 a month ago. Figures tracking medium and small firms also improved to 49.7 and 48.3, respectively, the NBS said.
China's official non-manufacturing PMI dropped to 50.6 in September, down from 52.6 a month ago. The gauge, mainly for business sentiment in the services and contraction sectors, remained in expansion territory for four consecutive months.
Within the official non-manufacturing PMI, the construction subindex jumped to 60.2 up from 56.5 in August, indicating measures such as revitalization of special debt and financial instruments promoted infrastructure construction. But the service subindex fell to 48.9 from 51.9, as the service activity was curbed by the epidemic.
(Writing by Alex Guo Editing by Harry Huo)
For any questions, please contact us by inquiry@fwenergy.com or +86-351-7219322.