China’s factory activity contracts

China's factory activity shrank in August for the second month in a row, official data showed Wednesday, as the sector was hit by strict zero-Covid restrictions and extreme heat.

The Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI), a key gauge of manufacturing in the world's second-biggest economy, came in at 49.4, up from July's 49.0 but still below the 50-point mark separating growth from contraction, National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) data showed.