China January HSBC factory output contracts for second month, misses flash estimate

Activity in China's factory sector shrank for a second month in January, a private business survey showed on Monday, as the new year got off to a rocky start for the world's second largest economy. The final HSBC/Markit Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) for January came in at 49.7 on a seasonally adjusted basis, just below the 50.0 level that separates growth from contraction. A similar survey released by the government on Sunday showed China's factory sector unexpectedly shrank for the first time in nearly 2-1/2 years in January, to 49.8, and firms saw more gloom ahead.

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