The S&P Global PMI composite index for China fell to 51.2 in November from 51.8 in October, indicating conditions in the aggregate economy improved for the sixth consecutive month but at a slower pace. The business activity index for China's services sector, also published today, eased to 52.1 in November from 52.6 in October, while the headline index for the manufacturing PMI survey, published earlier in the week, also showed stagnation in the sector. Official PMI survey data, published last week, showed contraction in both the manufacturing sector and non-manufacturing sector in November.

Respondents to today's service sector survey reported slower growth in output and new orders in November but a small increase in new export orders after a previous decline. Payrolls were also reported to have been cut for the fourth consecutive month while the survey's measure of confidence also weakened. Respondents also reported another big increase in input costs but only small increase in selling prices.

The China RPI and the RPI-P rose from minus 14 and minus 50 to plus7 and minus 20 respectively, indicating that recent Chinese data in sum are coming in close to consensus forecasts.

Service growth seen fairly resilient at 52.0 versus 52.6 in October.

The S&P China Services PMI is based on data compiled from monthly replies to questionnaires sent to purchasing executives in over 400 private service sector companies. The panel has been carefully selected to accurately replicate the true structure of the services economy.

The S&P China Composite PMI is a weighted average of the Manufacturing Output Index and the Services Business Activity Index, and is based on original survey data collected from a representative panel of over 800 companies based in the Chinese manufacturing and service sectors.

The PMIs have developed an outstanding reputation for providing the most up-to-date possible indication of what is really happening in the private sector economy by tracking variables such as sales, employment, inventories and prices. The indexes are widely used by businesses, governments and economic analysts in financial institutions to help better understand business conditions and guide corporate and investment strategy. In particular, central banks in many countries use the data to help make interest rate decisions. PMI surveys are the first indicators of economic conditions published each month and are therefore available well ahead of comparable data produced by government bodies.