China’s service sector activity contracted again in December for the fourth consecutive month as a result of the impact of the COVID-19 outbreaks and the restrictions implemented, according to the Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI), prepared by Caixin, although the pace of decline was somewhat less intense than in previous months.
Specifically, China’s service sector PMI in December rebounded to 48 points from 46.7 in the previous month, still below the 50-point breakeven threshold.
On the other hand, China’s manufacturing PMI worsened slightly in December, falling to 49 points from 49.4 in the previous month, thus accumulating five consecutive months of contraction.
The lower output was often related to the impact of COVID-19 containment measures on operations, including temporary business shutdowns and customer demand. However, some companies indicated a relative improvement in conditions compared to November, survey officials said.
«Optimism improved significantly. Service providers expressed strong confidence in an economic recovery following the relaxation of COVID-19 containment measures,» noted Wang Zhe, chief economist at Caixin Insight Group.
Source: (EUROPA PRESS)
