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China's manufacturing PMI edges up to 50.2 in February, beating forecast
Updated 10:36, 01-Mar-2022
CGTN
China's factory activity expands in February. /CFP

China's factory activity expands in February. /CFP

China's factory activity in February expanded again, with manufacturing recovering steadily after the Spring Festival holiday, data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showed on Tuesday.

The official manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) edged up to 50.2 in February from 50.1 in January. It is above Reuters' estimate of 49.9.

Manufacturing and business activities had slowed down due to the Spring Festival holiday. In February, the production index was 50.4, down 0.5 percentage points from the previous month. 

The new orders index was 50.7, up 1.4 percentage points from the previous month, returning into the expansion range. It indicated that market demand for the manufacturing industry increased after the holiday, according to Zhao Qinghe, a senior statistician at the NBS.

The purchase price index and factory gate price index of major raw materials came at 60.0 and 54.1 respectively last month, up 3.6 and 3.2 percentage points compared to January, pointing to an overall increase in market prices, Zhao said.

Meanwhile, the sub-index for production and operation activity was 58.7, which was 1.2 percentage points higher than the previous month and rose to a recent high, thanks to policies and measures promoting the steady growth of the industrial economy and boosting enterprises' confidence, Zhao added.

In addition, the official non-manufacturing PMI, which measures activities in the construction and services sectors, rose to 51.6, up 0.5 percentage points from January, according to the same data.

The official composite PMI, which includes both manufacturing and services activities, stood at 51.2, increasing 0.2 percentage points from January.

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