Activities in China’s manufacturing and services sectors contracted quickly in March as local governments locked down major factory and trade hubs to curb the worst resurgence of COVID-19 cases since early 2020.
The Caixin/Markit survey showed on April 1 that China’s manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) shrank to 48.1 in March, indicating the steepest rate of contraction since February 2020, when the spread of COVID was first detected in the Chinese city of Wuhan. The deterioration in manufacturing conditions was broadly in line with the official PMI released on March 31.
