April Manufacturing PMI Drops in April
Source：CCR(China Chemical Reporter) 2013-05-14
China's Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) for the manufacturing sector fell to 50.6% in April from 50.9% in March, the China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing (CFLP) said on May 1.
The figure - above 50% - represented expansion of economy, according to CFLP. It was the seventh consecutive month in which the PMI indicator stayed above 50%. The slight retreat indicates slower growth in the manufacturing sector in the nation.
“The April PMI drop showed that the foundation for China's economic recovery is not solid enough”, said Zhang Liqun, an analyst from the Development Research Center of the State Council.
Orders received by manufacturers dropped in April, as the sub-index for new orders edged down 0.6 percentage point from the previous month to 51.7%.
The sub-index for purchasing prices of raw materials fell 10.5 percentage points to 40.1%, the first reading below 50 after the sub-index stayed above the demarcation level for seven consecutive months.
The sub-index for finished goods inventories was down 2.5 percentage points from the previous month to 47.7%, while the sub-index for production shrank slightly by 0.1 percentage points to 52.6%.
The sub-index for raw materials inventories remained unchanged at 47.5% in April.
The official PMI figure is based on a survey of purchasing managers from 3
000 companies in 21 industries, according to CFLP.