The manufacturing purchasing managers' index (PMI) for China stood at 50.0% in May, a decrease of 0.3 percentage points from the previous month, positioning it exactly at the threshold between expansion and contraction.

By enterprise size, the PMI for large enterprises was 51.1%, up 0.9 percentage points from April, indicating expansion. The PMI for medium-sized enterprises was 48.6%, down 1.9 percentage points, and for small enterprises was 48.5%, down 1.6 percentage points, both remaining in contraction territory.

Among the five component sub-indices that constitute the manufacturing PMI, only the production index remained above the critical 50-point mark. The new orders index, raw material inventory index, employment index, and supplier delivery time index all fell below 50.

The production index was 51.2%, down 0.3 percentage points from the previous month, still indicating expansion in manufacturing activity. The new orders index was 49.9%, down 0.7 percentage points, reflecting a decline in market demand. The raw material inventory index was 48.6%, down 0.7 percentage points, signaling a reduction in stockpiles of key materials. The employment index was 48.6%, down 0.2 percentage points, showing a slight decrease in hiring activity. The supplier delivery time index was 49.2%, down 0.3 percentage points, indicating longer delivery times from suppliers compared to April.

The non-manufacturing PMI, which measures activity in the services and construction sectors, rose to 50.1% in May, up 0.7 percentage points from April, indicating a return to expansionary territory.

By sector, the business activity index for the construction sector was 48.8%, up 0.8 percentage points, while the index for the services sector was 50.3%, up 0.7 percentage points. Within services, industries such as railway transport, telecommunications, broadcasting, television & satellite transmission services, and insurance reported business activity indices above 55.0%, indicating robust expansion. In contrast, sectors like air transport and real estate remained in contraction.

Key sub-indices for the non-manufacturing sector showed mixed trends. The new orders index rose to 45.0%, up 0.7 percentage points. The input price index increased to 52.2%, up 0.5 percentage points, indicating rising costs for business operations. The selling price index was 48.8%, up 0.7 percentage points, suggesting a narrowing decline in overall sales prices. The employment index edged up slightly to 45.6%. The business expectations index improved to 54.8%, reflecting increased confidence among non-manufacturing firms regarding future market development.

The composite PMI output index, which combines both manufacturing and non-manufacturing activity, was 50.5% in May, an increase of 0.4 percentage points from April, indicating that overall business activity in China continued to expand.