China's vast factory sector lost momentum last month, according to official figures published on Sunday, renewing questions about how long the world's second-largest economy can withstand a deepening global energy crisis and stubborn problems with demand at home.
The official manufacturing purchasing managers' index (PMI), released jointly by China's National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) and the China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing, fell to exactly 50 in May, down 0.3 points from April and marking the index's lowest reading since February.
On a scale of 0 to 100, the figure sits precisely at the threshold separating expansion from contraction, a mathematically neutral result that, in context, is anything but reassuring.
The detail behind the headline number adds to the concern.
New orders slipped to 49.9, back into contraction territory from 50.6 in April, while production edged down to 51.2 and raw material stockpiles fell to 48.6.
