China's Economic Pulse: Manufacturing Struggles While Services Slow Down

In January 2025, as follows are interesting trends in the Chinese economy indicated by the Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) numbers:

Manufacturing PMI: 49.1 (compared to 50.1 in the estimate and 50.1 from the previous month). This simply indicates that any number below 50 means a contracting manufacturing sector.

Non- manufacturing PMI: 50.2 (below 52.2 of the previous month). This means the service sector still grows but in a much slower pace compared with the past period.

Composite PMI: 50.1 (from the previous month, 52.2). This is a general index that measures manufacturing and services to show very weak growth compared to the previous time.

The manufacturing sector still has problems, and demand is weaker than in the previous months. The non-manufacturing sector is still growing but at a slower pace. Although some government measures to revive the economy may yield results, the overall recovery is uncertain and fragile.