On January 4, the National Bureau of Statistics of China (NBS) announced that in December 2010 China's Purchasing Management Index (PMI) declined to 53.9, 1.3 points lower than in the previous month. China's PMI has now been consistently above 50 for 22 consecutive months dating back to March 2009.
Economists consider the index - which takes into account new orders, production, supplier delivery times, inventories, prices, employment, import orders and exports - to be a key economic indicator. A PMI above 50 indicates an expanding economy, while a score below 50 forecasts a sluggish economy for the next three to six months.
Of China's PMI figure for December, the production index was 57.5, one point lower than in November 2010. In the month of December, China's metal product industry and transport equipment manufacturing sector saw rapid growth, while the indices for petroleum processing, coke production and nuclear fuel processing were below 50.