China's October Manufacturing PMI at 50.1... Expansion Phase After Half a Year

Market Surpasses Expectations

The Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI), which indicates China's economic trends, exceeded market expectations, marking the first time in six months that it has moved out of the 'economic contraction' phase.

On the 31st, the National Bureau of Statistics of China announced that the manufacturing PMI for October this year rose by 0.3 from the previous month to 50.1. This figure surpasses the market forecast of 49.9. The PMI statistic is an indicator showing economic trends. A value above 50 indicates economic expansion, while below 50 signifies economic contraction.

This is the first time since April (50.4) that China's manufacturing PMI has exceeded the baseline of 50. The PMI recorded 49.5 in May and June, and declined further to 49.4 in July and 49.1 in August. Last month, it slightly rebounded to 49.8 but remained in the economic contraction phase for the fifth consecutive month.

By company size, the large enterprise PMI in October rose 0.9 from the previous month to 51.5, surpassing the baseline. However, the medium-sized enterprise PMI (49.4) and small enterprise PMI (47.5) still indicated contraction.

Meanwhile, the non-manufacturing PMI consistently maintained an economic expansion phase, unlike manufacturing. In October, it rose 0.2 to 50.2. The non-manufacturing PMI measures activities in construction and service industries.