Chinese manufacturers saw a fractional deterioration in operating conditions at the start of 2015. Although output rose slightly and new orders broadly stabilised, staffing levels were cut for the fifteenth successive month. Meanwhile, relatively subdued client demand led companies to reduce their stock holdings of both postand pre-production goods in January. On the costs front, lower raw material prices led to the steepest reduction in average input costs since March 2009, which contributed to a sharp decline in prices charged. After adjusting for seasonal factors, the HSBC Purchasing Managers’ Index™ (PMI™) – a composite indicator designed to provide a single-figure snapshot of operating conditions in the manufacturing economy – posted at 49.7 in January, down slightly from the earlier flash reading (49.8), but up fractionally from 49.6 in December. This signalled a second successive monthly deterioration in the health of the sector, albeit only slight. Latest data indicated a renewed expansion of Chinese manufacturing output in January, though the rate of increase was only fractional. This was the first time that production has risen in three months. Meanwhile, total new business was broadly unchanged, following a slight reduction in December. According to panellists, relatively muted client demand, both at home and overseas, dampened new order growth. Furthermore, growth in new export work eased to a marginal pace that was the slowest in the current nine-month sequence. Manufacturing companies reduced their headcounts again in January. That said, the rate of job shedding was the weakest recorded in 15 months and only slight. Reduced workforce numbers contributed to a further accumulation of outstanding business in January. That said, the rate of increase eased since December and was modest overall.
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torsdag 30. november 2023
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