Manufacturing and services shrink amid Covid curbs

China's manufacturing and services activities shrank further to a seven-month low last month, official data showed. They were stung by the strict Covid restrictions and rising infections that analysts say will hurt the economy well into 2023.

The official manufacturing purchasing managers' index came in at 48 for November against 49.2 in October, the lowest reading in seven months, data released by the National Bureau of Statistics showed.

Economists in a Reuters poll had expected a PMI of 49.

The non-manufacturing PMI, which looks at service-sector activity, fell to 46.7 from 48.7 in October, also the lowest reading in seven months.

The 50-point mark separates contraction from growth on a monthly basis.

"Downside risks continue to grow as the virus situation worsens and will weigh heavily on the economy into 2023," said Sheana Yue, China economist at Capital Economics, in a research note yesterday after the PMI data release.

The sub-indexes for manufacturing PMI including output, employment and suppliers' delivery times, all shrank in November at a faster pace than the month before, the data showed.

In other news, Sunac China (1918) has reportedly agreed to transfer nearly 90 percent of its stake in one of its valuable projects - the Dongjiadu project in Shanghai - to CITIC Trust and China Huarong Asset Management, mainland media said.

Elsewhere, Shanghai Rural Commercial Bank will provide 20 billion yuan (HK$22.01 billion) worth of credit lines to developers, including Powerlong Real Estate (1238) and Forte under Fosun International (0656).