BEIJING (dpa-AFX) - China's manufacturing activity continued to expand in July with increases in output, new orders and employment, survey results from S&P Global showed Monday.
The headline RatingDog China General Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index posted a four-month low score of 50.9 in July, down from 51.7 in June.
Although the growth rate eased from June, the current upturn was the joint-longest in five years, matching the expansion from November 2023 to June 2024.
New orders increased for the fourteenth straight month in July, marking the longest sequence since 2018. That said, growth eased since July despite the first increase in new export business in three months.
Production expanded for the eighth straight month in July. The rate of growth weakened to a four-month low but this followed the strongest quarter of increases since the second quarter of 2024.
Manufacturers raised employment for the second straight month to support rising workloads. The rate of job creation was the strongest since August 2023.
New orders and backlogs increased in July but manufacturers ordered fewer inputs for the first time since November 2025. Suppliers' delivery times lengthened for the fifth consecutive month.
Output prices were broadly unchanged in July. At the same time, input price inflation softened for the third consecutive month to the weakest since January.
Manufacturers remained optimistic in their 12-month forecasts for output. The overall strength of sentiment picked up since June.
'The manufacturing PMI is expected to remain in expansionary territory in the near term, though the pace of growth may become more moderate,' RatingDog Founder Yao Yu said.
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