China, Japan slow to respond to stimulus

SYDNEY: China’s mammoth manufacturing sector showed some tentative signs of stabilising in June, according to a non-official survey, without finding the momentum needed for a lasting recovery in the world's second-largest economy.

Optimism appeared in short supply as firms surveyed by HSBC/Markit reported the sharpest reduction in hiring intentions for six years, regardless of Beijing's efforts to kick-start activity through policy stimulus. “After a decade of pell-mell growth in both capacity and leverage, this situation is symptomatic of excess supply capability in manufacturing amidst moribund demand,” analysts at Westpac said in a research note issued after the survey's release.