Posted on 01 Apr 2025
China's Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) for the manufacturing sector moved further into the expansion zone in March to reach 50.5, up for the second month by 0.3 point on month, according to data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) released on Monday morning.
For March, the sub-index of production registered 52.6, up by 0.1 point on month, while the new orders sub-index posted a faster on-month growth of 0.7 point to reach 51.8, the NBS data showed.
The PMIs across the three key industries maintained their growth in March, with the sub-indices for equipment manufacturing and high-tech manufacturing sectors reaching 52 and 52.3, up by 1.2 points and 1.4 points respectively on month. The sub-index for the consumer goods industry gained by 0.1 point on month to 50.
However, the index for energy-intensive industries retreated slightly to 49.3 in March, lower by 0.5 point from the previous month, according to the NBS.
By company size, the PMIs for medium- and small-sized enterprises recovered to some extent, with the indices rising by 0.7 point and 3.3 points respectively on month to reach 49.9 and 49.6. The PMI for large enterprises still stayed above the threshold of 50 in March to sit at 51.2, though it had slipped by 1.3 points compared with February.
During the month, the raw materials procurement pricing index declined by 1% on month to 49.8, mainly due to fluctuations in prices of some commodities such as crude oil and iron ore, the NBS statistics showed.
The manufacturing sentiment index stayed in the expansion zone in March to stand at 53.8 despite the on-month decrease of 0.7 point, suggesting that Chinese manufacturers have positive market expectations.
China's non-manufacturing PMI also maintained a slight recovery in March to 50.8, growing by 0.4 point on month. In addition, the business activity sub-index for the construction sector climbed by another 0.7 point on month to 53.4, mainly due to the accelerated pace of construction projects nationwide with the arrival of spring.
The composite PMI output index stood at 51.4 this month, rising by 0.3 point from that for February, indicating the improved production and operational vitality of Chinese enterprises, according to the NBS.
Source:Mysteel Global
