China factories contract for first time since virus

Slowing demand: Workers are seen producing washing machine parts at a factory in Nanjing. Official data has shown a decline in output for the month of August, signalling a cooling of the economy. ― AFP

NEW YORK: China’s factory activity contracted in September for the first time since the pandemic began last year, a sign of the damage a widespread electricity crunch is having on an already slowing economy.

The official manufacturing purchasing managers’ index (PMI) declined to 49.6 from 50.1 in August, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said yesterday, below the 50-mark that signals a decline in output.