China Factory Activity Improves Moderately as Lockdowns Ease

(Bloomberg) — China’s factories still struggled in May, but the slower pace of contraction suggests that the worst of the current economic fallout may be coming to an end as the country starts to ease up on its tough lockdowns.

The official manufacturing purchasing managers index rose to 49.6 from 47.4 in April, according to data released by the National Bureau of Statistics on Tuesday. A reading below 50 still indicates a contraction, but the gauge was better than the median estimate of 49 in a Bloomberg survey of economists.