Guangzhou (JLC), August 1, 2023 -- China's manufacturing purchasing managers' index (PMI) came in at 49.3% in July, up 0.3 percentage points from 49% in June, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) announced on July 31.
The monthly increase indicated a continuous improvement in China’s manufacturing sector, the NBS said.
A breakdown of July’s figures showed that the sub-index for production stood at 50.2%, a month-on-month decrease of 0.1 percentage points, signaling that production slowed slightly but was still in expansion.
The sub-index for new orders rose to 49.5%, up 0.9 percentage points on month, showing that market demand improved somewhat in July.
Meanwhile, the sub-index for raw material inventories came in at 48.2%, up 0.8 percentage points on month. The sub-index for distributor delivery time came in at 50.5%, increasing 0.1 percentage points from June. The sub-index for employment stood at 48.1%, down 0.1 percentage points on month.
In August, China's manufacturing PMI is expected to move closer to 50%, a line that separates growth from contraction, as the central leadership of the CPC has set the tone last week for China’s economic development in H2, with an emphasis on increasing domestic demand and boosting consumers’ spending and confidence.
Non-manufacturing PMI inches down
China’s non-manufacturing PMI came in at 51.5% in July, down from 53.2% in June, but was still above the critical line of 50%, suggesting the non-manufacturing sector was still expanding, but at a slower pace in the month.
The commercial activity indexes for the aviation transportation, courier services and IT services were all above 60% in July, suggesting high prosperity for these sectors. However, the index for real estate was still below the critical 50% mark, the NBS said.
