Manufacturing activity in China after February 2020 fell to its lowest level in April. It is weighed down by the epidemic of Govt cases affecting the country’s economy, according to an official index released on Saturday.
The Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI), a key indicator of manufacturing activity, was 47.4 in April. A number above 50 indicates an extension of the function and below it a summary.
The ‘decline in production and demand’ has deepened, officials said.
Since March, an epidemic has been strongest since the beginning of 2020, affecting all provinces of China.
Beijing wants to pursue its zero-sum Govt policy of restricting movement and controlling tens of thousands of people, especially in the northeastern part of the country and the Chinese economic capital, Shanghai. Its 25 million people have been largely confined to their homes since the beginning of April.
These drastic measures have disrupted supply chains due to a shortage of truckers, while goods are being stockpiled at the world’s busiest container port.
“The decline in production and demand has deepened,” Zhao Qinghe, a senior statistician with the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), said in a statement on Saturday.
/ ADS
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