Containers reflected in a puddle following a rainfall, at the Yantian port in Shenzhen, Guangdong province, China May 9, 2025. <\/p>\n
Tingshu Wang | Reuters<\/p>\n
BEIJING \u2014 China’s official gauge for manufacturing activity on Thursday pointed to a worse-than-expected contraction in July amid slower economic growth and ongoing U.S. trade tensions.<\/p>\n
The Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index for July was 49.3, missing expectations for 49.7 according to a Reuters poll.<\/p>\n
China’s official manufacturing PMI has been below the 50 mark, reflecting contraction rather than expansion, since April<\/a>.<\/p>\n U.S.-China tensions escalated in April with each side imposing tariffs of more than 100% on imports of goods from the other. The two sides agreed in May to roll back most of the additional duties for 90 days.<\/p>\n The truce is set to expire in mid-August. Representatives from the world’s two largest economies ended a meeting in Stockholm this week without announcing an extension of the agreement<\/a>, which had been widely expected.<\/p>\n Within the manufacturing PMI, sub-indexes showed that employment, new orders and raw materials inventory also contracted in July. The index for jobs ticked up to 48, from 47.9 in June.<\/p>\n