China's manufacturing activity expanded in December

2 Jan 2020 10:58 AM

A private survey published today showed that Chinese manufacturing activity expanded in December, but fell short of expectations.

The Markit / Caixin Manufacturing PMI registered 51.5 in December - while markets were expecting it to come in at 51.7 in the last month of the year. The Caixin PMI was 51.8 during November.

PMI readings above 50 indicate expansion, while PMI readings below this number indicate contraction.

Data from the country's statistics office on Tuesday showed the official manufacturing PMI for December which was slightly higher than expectations at 50.2.

Investors are closely watching the health of the Chinese economy amid a long-running trade dispute between the United States and China that has affected sentiment.

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