Deutsche Welle Chinese Edition recently reported on the Chinese National Bureau of Statistics’ manufacturing purchasing managers’ index (PMI), a monthly survey of factory purchasing managers. The index fell from 50.1 last month to 49.1 in January. The PMI for the construction industry fell as well.
In the manufacturing industry, new orders and industry output both fell in January. The raw material inventory sub-index for January was 47.7 percent, a decrease of 0.6 percentage points from the previous month, indicating that the main raw material inventory of the manufacturing industry continued to decrease. The employment sub-index is 48.1 percent, still showing a low outlook. A PMI higher than 50 represents expansion, and lower than 50 indicates reduction in activity.
Analysts indicated that one reason for the slowdown in purchasing may be that external demand has weakened. The new export order PMI sub-index fell to the lowest level seen since last March. Given US President Trump’s recent moves to impose tariffs on goods imported from China, export prospects are still unclear.
Last year, China’s trade surplus reached nearly US$1 trillion. Manufacturers hope to transfer inventory overseas to cope with weak domestic demand and the tariffs. But inside China, declining prices have eroded corporate profits and workers’ income.
Source: DW Chinese, January 27, 2025
https://p.dw.com/p/4pg13