China’s National Bureau of Statistics released survey data on Sunday that showed the country’s official manufacturing PMI coming in at 50.8 in March, its strongest reading since March 2023
Asian shares were mixed on Monday, with Shanghai adding 1% after surveys showed improvements in manufacturing conditions in China.
Sydney and Hong Kong were shut for the Easter Monday holiday.
Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 dropped more than 1.2%, to 39,883.96, after a Bank of Japan quarterly survey on business conditions showed sentiment among large manufacturers, which include auto and electronics giants, declined in March for the first time in a year.
The Shanghai Composite index added 1% to 3,072.29.
China’s National Bureau of Statistics released survey data on Sunday that showed the country’s official manufacturing PMI coming in at 50.8 in March, its strongest reading since March 2023.
A similar but separate survey, the Caixin/S&P Global China manufacturing PMI was 51.1 in March — its strongest since February 2023. It was at 50.9 in February.
Chinese manufacturers raised production, while also increasing their purchasing levels amid improved optimism, the report said.
A slew of policies introduced earlier this year to steady growth are gradually having an effect, Wang Zhe, senior economist at Caixin Insight Group, said in a statement.
China’s target for around 5% economic growth is “ambitious,” Zhe added. Given pressures that are constraining employment and keeping prices down, efforts will be needed to make growth more efficient and improve its quality, he said.
Elsewhere in Asia, South Korea’s Kospi rose 0.2%, to 2,750.64 and the Sensex in India was 0.7% higher. In Bangkok, the SET gained 0.1%.
Markets in the U.S. and Europe were shut on Friday. On Thursday, Wall Street rose to its latest winning month and quarter by rising to more records. The S&P 500 gained 0.1%, adding to its all-time high set the day before.
