Factory activity in China shrinks at sharper pace in October
BEIJING : Factory activity in China shrank for the sixth straight month last month and by more than expected, while service sector growth eased as firms grapple with the weakest economic growth in nearly 30 years.
The world's second largest economy is facing heightened risks from slowing global demand and the Sino-US trade war, adding pressure on policymakers to roll out more stimulus to avoid a sharper slowdown and bigger job losses.
The Purchasing Managers' Index fell to 49.3 last month, China's National Bureau of Statistics said , versus 49.8 in September. The 50-point mark separates growth from contraction on a monthly basis.
Economists polled by Reuters had expected the reading would be unchanged from September.
Weighed down by cooling domestic demand, sluggish investment and a protracted trade war with the US, China's economic growth slowed to a near 30-year low of 6 per cent in the third quarter, raising expectations that Beijing will need to roll out more support measures.
New export orders fell for the 17th month in a row last month, with the sub-index down to 47 from 48.2 in the previous month.
Total new orders fell back to contractionary territory and erased September's fleeting growth, suggesting continued weakness in demand at home.- REUTERS
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