China’s manufacturing sector growth eased last month as the economy continued to slow in the face of government measures to cool searing growth and rein in stubbornly high inflation
The official purchasing managers' index (PMI) dropped to 50.4 from 51.2 in September. A figure above 50 indicates expansion in manufacturing activity, while a figure below 50 means a contraction. The official index has not fallen below 50 since February 2009, at the height of the global financial crisis.
The October reading was lower than many economists had predicted but still indicated growth and suggests the economy is continuing the gradual slowdown that Beijing has been trying to engineer.