Chinese December 20 Caixin Manufacturing PMI 53.0 vs exp 54.7; prev 54.9

Ross J Burland FXStreet

Chinese December 20 Caixin Manufacturing PMI arrived at 53.0 vs exp 54.7 and prev 54.9.

Full report

The health of China's manufacturing sector continued to improve in December, albeit at the softest rate for three months. Firms signalled slower, but still steep, expansions of output and total new work, while export sales rose modestly.

At the same time, companies took a more cautious approach to employment levels amid an accelerated rise in overall input costs, as workforce numbers were broadly unchanged. Looking ahead, firms were still optimistic that output would increase over the next year, though overall confidence dipped to a three-month low.

AUD/USD update

The Aussie has ticked higher on the data and printed a fresh session high of 0.7716, up some 0.2% to start the week off.

AUD/USD remains bid above 0.77 despite below-forecast China PMI

Description of the Caixin China Manufacturing PM

The Caixin China Manufacturing PMI™, released by Markit Economics, is based on data compiled from monthly replies to questionnaires sent to purchasing executives in over 400 private manufacturing sector companies.

Author

Ross J Burland

FXStreet

Ross J Burland, born in England, UK, is a sportsman at heart. He played Rugby and Judo for his county, Kent and the South East of England Rugby team.

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