China Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) rose to 49.7 in June 2025, up 0.2 percentage points from the previous month, indicating a mild improvement in manufacturing activity, the National Bureau of Statistics reported on Monday. The improvement was driven by gains in production, new orders, and supplier delivery times, while employment and raw material inventories remained weak, according to the announcement. The improvement reflected stronger output and demand, with the production index rising to 51.0 and the new orders index increasing to 50.2. The supplier delivery time index also improved to 50.2, indicating accelerated deliveries across the sector. However, the employment index declined to 47.9, and the raw material inventory index remained weak at 48.0, suggesting continued softness in labour demand and inventory restocking. By enterprise size, large manufacturers led the improvement with a PMI of 51.2, up 0.5 percentage points and above the neutral mark. The PMI for medium-sized firms rose to 48.6, while small enterprises fell sharply to 47.3, down 2.0 points, pointing to widening disparities across firm sizes. Attribution: Amwal Al Ghad English Subediting: M. S. Salama
