- He Fan, chief economist at Caixin Insight Group
China's manufacturing activity declined at its fastest pace since the peak of the global financial crisis, fuelling concerns over the world's second biggest economy's health. The preliminary Caixin China Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index dropped to 47.0 in September, the lowest level in more than six years, below the median forecast of 47.5. This compared with a final reading of 47.3 in August, the lowest since March 2009. New orders and new export orders both fell at a quicker pace in September, while factory output overall also dropped faster. The new orders sub-index declined 0.6 percentage points to 46.0 in September, while the new export orders sub-index slipped 0.8 percentage points to 45.8. It is the seventh straight month that conditions in Chinese manufacturing have deteriorated and is in line with other recent weak data of the domestic economy. A slew of disappointing reports raised concerns around the health of China's economy, leading several banks and international institutions to downgrade growth outlook. The Asian Development Bank cut its China's growth estimate to 6.8% for 2015, down from its previous forecast of 7.2% and below 2014's 7.3% growth rate. It expected the growth rate of the world's second largest economy will slide to 6.7%in 2016. Barclays also downgraded its growth outlook for China to 6.6% and 6.0% for 2015 and 2016, from 6.8% and 6.6% previously.
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