Over the last decade, the idea of a “Chinese slowdown” has come to seem like an oxymoron. The data on manufacturing activity which Beijing released yesterday show this is no longer the case. The official purchasing managers’ index fell to 49 in November, For the first time since February 2009, the sector is experiencing a decline and the future looks no brighter. Economists at UBS expect year-on-year GDP growth to drop to 7.7 per cent at the start of next year, a sharp decline on this year’s expected 9.3 per cent.
過去10年裏,「中國放緩」這個概念似乎已變成一個矛盾措辭。但中國昨日發佈的製造業活動數據顯示,情況已經發生了變化。官方的11月採購經理人指數(PMI)跌至49。自2009年2月以來,中國製造業首次出現收縮,而前景也不見得更加光明。瑞銀(UBS)經濟學家預計,明年初中國國內生產毛額(GDP)同比增幅將降至7.7%,遠低於今年全年預期將實現的9.3%的增幅。