China’s Purchasing Managers Index Rallies Amid Relaxed Controls

Manufacturing

As government bodies have eased controls to combat disease and let manufacturing facilities open again, manufacturing in China bounced back in March. The purchasing managers’ index increased from last month’s record low of 35.7 to 52, the Associated Press reported.

The index, which has a range of 100 points, is published by the China Federation of Logistics & Purchasing and the Chinese statistics bureau. Scores higher than 50 indicate rising activity.

The ruling party, for its part, is aiming to rejuvenate the second biggest economy around the globe after calling success over COVID-19, while the United States and other governments shuttered companies amid the coronavirus pandemic. The closing of the economy of China had effects throughout the world and impacted nations that provide parts to its manufacturing facilities.

The federation, along with economists in private industry, note that the economy keeps encountering hurdles while government bodies aim to make sure a rise in COVID-19 cases does not occur as workers come back on the job and manufacturers remake their supply chains. Macquarie Capital’s Larry Hu said per the report, “Looking forward, while the lowest point is behind us, it’s not the time to celebrate.”

Government bodies note that verticals dominated by the state, like steel, are near their typical production. Manufacturers of vehicles and other makers in the private sector, however, note they are working below their typical levels. The speed of their renewal relies on the pace of their supply chains coming back into place.

The China Federation of Logistics & Purchasing said in a statement, as cited by the news outlet, that the newest information does “not indicate that economic activity has fully recovered.”

As previously reported, factory production experienced its quickest fall in three decades per the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) earlier in March.

The National Bureau of Statistics Spokesman Mao Shengyong said after the release of the data per previous reports, “China’s containment of the epidemic is bearing fruit, but there is a challenge ahead in controlling the spread in other countries.”

The Index of Services Production fell 13 percent year on year in January and Febraury.