Manufacturing activity continues expanding in Oct as economy shows ‘resilience’

China’s manufacturing sector expanded at a slower but still stable pace in October, according to official data Tuesday.

The official manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) came in at 51.6, moderating from 52.4 in September and 51.7 in August, data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showed.

A reading above 50 indicates expansion, while below 50 reflects contraction.

NBS official Zhao Qinghe attributed the slowdown in expansion to a high base of comparison in September and influence from the weeklong national holidays.

“The growth in production and market demand eased,” he noted.

Meanwhile, factory activity in industrial areas with high energy consumption and pollution softened as the government stepped up efforts to strengthen environmental protection. Non-metallic mineral products and oil refining saw a notable slowdown.

“Despite the retreat, the indicator was 0.4 percentage points higher than that of a year ago and it stayed at the average level for this year,” Zhao said, pointing to the impetus from highend manufacturing and the production of consumer goods.

The manufacturing of automobiles, special equipment, medical devices, food and beverages, and textiles registered strong increases.

“The index stabilized above the boom-bust line after gains for two consecutive months,” said Zhang Liqun with the Development Research Center of the State Council.

“Stable sub-indices in production, stock and purchases indicate the economy has strong resilience.”

China’s manufacturing PMI has been in positive territory for 15 consecutive months.

The NBS data showed the services sector saw milder expansion in October, with the PMI at 54.3, down from 55.4 in September.