China's manufacturing PMI at 49 in April

China

China's manufacturing PMI at 49 in April

2025-04-30 10:38 Last Updated At：17:57

The purchasing managers' index (PMI) for China's manufacturing sector came in at 49 in April, down 1.5 percentage points from March, official data showed on Wednesday.

Despite the drop, high-tech manufacturing continued to expand, with its PMI reaching 51.5, significantly outperforming the broader manufacturing sector, according to the data released by the National Bureau of Statistics and China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing.

The new orders index for consumer goods manufacturing stood at 50, indicating stable domestic demand, the data showed.

The data also showed that the business activity expectation index for April stood at 52.1, remaining in the expansion range, reflecting optimism among enterprises.

"Business still have strong confidence in market development. The business activity expectation indexes for industries such as food, wine, drink, tea, automobile, railways, ships, aviation, and aerospace equipment were in a relatively prosperous range of 58 and above," said Huo Lihui, director of the business climate department of the Service Survey Center under the National Bureau of Statistics.

While global trade fluctuations have posed challenges to China's manufacturing industry, its large-scale market and complete industrial supply chain have continued to provide resilience against external shocks, ensuring economic stability, according to experts.

"China is irreplaceable in the global manufacturing sector, particularly in its supply chain capabilities. Meanwhile, China has more advantages in digitalization and smart technology than other economies," said Hu Dajian, vice president of China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing.

EU responds to Trump's tariff threats: "prepared for every scenario"

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on Tuesday the European Union is "prepared for every scenario" if the United States unilaterally raises tariffs on cars and trucks imported from the bloc.

Speaking in Yerevan, Armenia, on the sidelines of the EU-Armenia Summit, von der Leyen pushed back against U.S. President Donald Trump's latest tariff threat. She stressed that "a deal is a deal," warning against unilateral changes to the agreement.

Trump on Friday threatened to increase tariffs on cars and trucks imported from the EU to 25 percent next week, accusing the bloc of failing to comply with the trade deal between the two sides.

"It is fully understood and agreed that, if they produce Cars and Trucks in U.S.A. Plants, there will be NO TARIFF," he said on Truth Social.

A European Commission spokesperson said Friday that the EU will "keep options open" to protect its interests if the United States takes measures inconsistent with the joint statement between the two sides signed last year on reciprocal, fair and balanced trade.

"The EU is implementing its Joint Statement commitments in line with standard legislative practice, keeping the U.S. administration fully informed throughout," the spokesperson said.

A EU-U.S. trade deal was reached last year, under which the EU would suspend tariffs on all U.S. industrial products and introduce tariff-rate quotas for a wide range of U.S. agri-food products entering the EU market. In return, the United States would apply a 15-percent import tariff on most EU goods.