BEIJING, July 1 (UPI) -- China's manufacturing activity in June as shown by the official Purchasing Managers' Index released Monday slowed to 50.1.
While any number over 50 denotes expansion, the June score announced by the China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing was lower than May's 50.8.
Although June marked the ninth consecutive month the PMI has stayed in the positive range, all major components that go to make up the index declined during the month, indicating downward pressure on the economy, said Zhang Liqun, analyst with the Chinese Cabinet's Development Research Center.
The June production sub-index in the PMI dropped to 52 from May's 53.3, while the June sub-index for new orders declined to 50.4, off 1.4 point from May, the official Xinhua News Agency reported.
On the brighter side, Zhang said economic growth was stabilizing. Inventories had reached historically low levels with little room for additional contraction.
Investment and consumption have remained generally stable in the first five months of this year, Xinhua said.
