China’s service activities picked up in May as supply, demand both improved – private survey
DATA MACRO
China’s service activities picked up in May as supply, demand both improved – private survey
DATA MACRO

China’s service activities picked up in May as supply, demand both improved – private survey

 

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China’s Caixin Service Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) for May comes in at 57.1, compared to market expected 55.2 and a reading of 56.4 in the previous month.

Service supply and demand both expanded in May and the sub-indexes for service business activities and new orders both rebounded from April and hit the second-highest since December 2020. The sub-index for new export orders remained in expansionary territory, but hit the lowest this year.

The survey contrasts with the official PMI released last week that showed a slower pace of expansion in the services sector.

The Caixin survey showed service companies reported a rise in new business last month when the first May Day holiday following China’s COVID reopening boosted orders for hotels, restaurants and travel agencies.

Increased workloads led firms to grow their headcount for the fourth consecutive month, although the speed of job creation slowed.Average prices charged by service companies rose by the fastest since February 2022.

Caixin Composite PMI, which tracks both manufacturing and service industries, comes in at 55.6, compared to 53.6 in the previous month.