National

Regional

Taiwan, HK, Macao

Special Coverage

Focus

Society

Profiles

China's PMI rises to 41.2 pct in Dec.

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2009-01-04 11:46

BEIJING  -- The Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) of China's manufacturing sector climbed 2.4 percentage points month-on-month to 41.2 percent in December, China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing (CFLP) told Xinhua Sunday.

Related readings:  PPI falls to 2-year low in China  China's Nov CPI drops to 22-month low  China's CPI may ease to 1.2% in Dec

The index has been lower than 50 percent for three consecutive months. It was also the fifth time the index remained below 50 percent within last  year after it fell to a record low in November.

The new figure reflected the country's economy had further contracted, analysts said.

A reading above 50 percent suggests expansion, while one below 50 percent rings the alarm for economic slowdown.

The PMI included a package of indices used to measure a country's monthly economic performance. China's PMI was conducted on the base of surveys directed at purchasing and supply managers of more than 700 manufacturers across the country.

Index measuring new orders rose 5.0 percentage points to 37.3 percent in December. That of new orders for export rebounded by a slight 1.7 percentage points to 30.7 percent from the previous month.