SOURCE / ECONOMY
China's manufacturing activities expand at fastest rate in a decade: Caixin PMI
Published: Dec 01, 2020 11:19 AM

Workers of a quartz glass company check quartz tubes at Jinping industrial park of Haizhou District in Lianyungang, east China's Jiangsu Province, June 30, 2020.  (Photo by Geng Yuhe/Xinhua)


 
Growth of China's manufacturing activities in November reached the highest pace in a decade, as the economy continues to recover, lifting manufacturing from the fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the private Caixin index released on Tuesday. 

The Caixin Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) for November recorded a score of 54.9, the highest in 10 years, up from 53.6 and exceeding the market gauge at 53.5. 

A score above 50 reflects expansion in the manufacturing sector, readings below 50 indicate contraction. 

Gauges documenting both total new orders and factory output marked 10-year highs. New export orders rose modestly. The private sector survey also showed Chinese factories hired workers for the third month in a row and at a faster pace. 

"Supply and demand improved at the same time. Employment recovered markedly and overseas demand continued expanding," said Wang Zhe, senior economist at Caixin Insight Group, in a note accompanying the survey release.

Total new orders and factory output marked record highs, the index also showed Chinese factories are hiring new workers for the third month in a row and at a faster pace. 

The official PMI for factory activity, released by the National Bureau of Statistics on Monday, rose at the fastest pace in over three years, reaching 52.1.

Tian Yun, a vice director of the Beijing Economic Operation Association, told the Global Times that the rising growth of the Chinese manufacturing industry mostly thanks to increasing domestic and overseas demand and government's infrastructure-driven stimulus. 

"Although COVID-19 infection levels in China's trade partners are likely to cause disruptions in China's export trade, overall the growth in manufacturing sector is expected to continue over the next few months," Tian said, "employment levels will improve as factories hire staff to meet orders."

Global Times