China's manufacturing PMI at 49 in February

The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) on Wednesday announced that the purchasing managers' index (PMI) for the country's manufacturing sector stood at 49 in February, down 0.3 percentage points from the previous month. The PMI for China's non-manufacturing sector came in at 49.5 in February, up 0.1 percentage points from the previous month. Anything below the 50-point mark signals a contraction while a score above that level indicates expansion. NBS statistician Huo Lihui attributed the slide mainly to slower operations during the Spring Festival holiday, which fell entirely in February this year. However, indices for sectors including "textiles, apparel and automobiles remained below the critical point, indicating weak market activity," Huo said. "Economic activities contracted in the beginning of this year," Zhiwei Zhang, President and Chief Economist at Pinpoint Asset Management, wrote in a note after Wednesday's data release. "The government's policy stance is flexible this year," said Zhang, adding that he "(expects) the government to boost investment moderately to mitigate the pressure on the economy" if activity slows further in the months ahead. (Xinhua/AFP) Edited by Thomas McAlinden