China’s factory activity unexpectedly contracted in July and a separate gauge covering services and construction hit its lowest level in more than three years, adding to concerns over growth in the world’s second-largest economy.
China’s official manufacturing purchasing managers’ index was 49.2 in July, the lowest level since February, when it last declined. The non-manufacturing PMI was 49, its weakest level since December 2022, with a construction gauge at just 47.