NetEase recently reported that, on November 1, 2012, HSBC released the PMI (Purchasing Managers Index) number for the Chinese manufacturing industry. The October number is 49.5, which is higher than last month’s figure of 47.9. This also indicates that the Chinese manufacturing sector is on the decline for the year. In October, manufacturing production output was still slipping. However total new orders had a slight increase due to more new customers. Meanwhile new export orders declined for the sixth consecutive month. Inventory was also shrinking, while ten percent of the manufacturers surveyed were reducing the size of their workforce. For the first time this year, the average price of manufacturing sector products saw a 9 percent increase. This was widely believed to be caused by the increased cost of material. Qu Hongbin, HSBC Chief Economist for the China Region, commented that the HSBC PMI number demonstrated that the Chinese manufacturing sector is showing signs of stabilization, which is largely the result of the earlier government “easing” measures. PMI is an indicator of financial activity reflecting purchasing managers’ acquisition of goods and services. A PMI number below 50 typically reflects a decline.
Source: NetEase, November 1, 2012
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