Official Chinese PMI survey data show conditions in China's aggregate economy deteriorated in April, perhaps reflecting the impact of the escalation in global trade tensions and market volatility seen since the start of the month. The headline index for the CFLP manufacturing fell sharply from 50.5 in March to 49.0 in April, indicating renewed contraction in the sector after two months of modest expansion, while the non-manufacturing PMI fell from 50.8 to 50.4. The composite index covering the entire economy fell from 51.4 in March to 50.2 in April, its lowest level since January.

The headline index for the manufacturing and non-manufacturing PMIs were both below the consensus forecasts of 49.7 and 50.5 respectively. The RPI and RPI-P fell from plus 37 and plus 72 to plus 30 and plus 43 respectively, indicating that data are still coming in well above market expectations.

The manufacturing PMI is seen marginally in contraction at 49.7 versus 50.5 in March and services at 50.5 versus 50.8.

China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing (CFLP) Manufacturing Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) is the monthly survey of about 800 purchasing managers that is conducted jointly by CFLP and National Bureau of Statistics (NBS). The questions focus on the health of the manufacturing sector. The numeric result is a diffusion index. A reading above 50 indicates that manufacturing is growing. A reading below 50 indicates contraction.

Investors need to keep their fingers on the pulse of the economy because it dictates how various types of investments will perform. By tracking economic data such as the purchasing managers' manufacturing indexes, investors will know what the economic backdrop is for the various markets. The stock market likes to see healthy economic growth because that translates to higher corporate profits. The bond market prefers less rapid growth and is extremely sensitive to whether the economy is growing too quickly and causing potential inflationary pressures. The CLFP manufacturing data give a detailed look at the manufacturing sector, how busy it is and where things are headed. Since the manufacturing sector is a major source of cyclical variability in the economy, this report has a big influence on the markets. And its sub-indexes provide a picture of orders, output, employment and prices. The survey tends to have a greater impact when it is released prior to the HSBC/Markit manufacturing PMI because the two reports are correlated.