China’s official gauge of factory activity fell more than expected in February and retreated to its weakest level in nine months, as manufacturers suspended production during the Lunar New Year holiday.
China’s official manufacturing purchasing managers index dropped to 50.6 from 51.3 in January, according to data released Sunday by the National Bureau of Statistics.
The reading was lower than the 51.0 median forecast expected by economists polled by The Wall Street Journal but remains above the 50 mark that separates activity expansion from contraction.
The statistics bureau said the expansion of factory production and demand slowed in February because of the Lunar New Year holiday, which fell in February this year. China’s industrial sector has led its economic recovery from the coronavirus shocks last year, thanks to Beijing’s policy to restart business quickly and strong export demand while other parts of the world were derailed by the pandemic.
The subindex measuring production fell to 51.9 from January’s 53.5. Total new orders also dropped to 51.5 from 52.3 in January, according to the official data. The subindex of new export orders also fell from January’s 50.2 to 48.8, sliding into contraction territory after expanding for five months straight.
