The official manufacturing purchasing managers' index -- a key measure of factory output -- stood at 49.5 in October, below the 50-point mark separating expansion from contraction, the National Bureau of Statistics said.
The reading came after the index edged up to 50.2 in September, having shrunk for five consecutive months.
"In October... the prosperity of the manufacturing sector somewhat returned to decline," the NBS said.
The world's number two economy has charted an uncertain recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic as weak consumption and a slow-motion housing crisis weigh on growth.
Beijing said last week it would issue one trillion yuan ($137 billion) of sovereign bonds to boost infrastructure spending, having announced a series of targeted measures over recent months to kickstart economic activity.
"The weak PMI reinforces the case for stronger fiscal policy support," said Zhiwei Zhang, president and chief economist of Pinpoint Asset Management.
"With the new bond issuance announced recently, the fiscal policy stance has turned more proactive," he said.
However, "the policies in the property sector need to be fine-tuned to avoid further damage", he added.
China's economy grew at a faster-than-expected 4.9 percent in the third quarter.
But Beijing still faces an uphill battle to achieve its stated annual target of around five percent.
A string of defaults has encapsulated chronic issues in its debt-laden real-estate sector, which is responsible for about a quarter of gross domestic product.
State media portrayed the bond issuance as part of a push for "post-disaster recovery and reconstruction", following a year of extreme weather events.
The notes will be issued in the fourth quarter of this year, according to state news agency Xinhua.
China's share of global manufacturing jobs to rise by 2050: study
Washington (AFP) Oct 30, 2023 -
China's share of global manufacturing jobs will increase by 2050, according to a study out Monday, even as the United States and European Union aim to be less reliant on its products.
The Asian giant's share of global manufacturing jobs will rise to 43 percent of the total by that year -- making China one of the only countries to see growth in such jobs during that time, according to a study by the Washington-based Center for Global Development.
Major Western economies seriously questioned their reliance on China for goods as bottlenecks clogged global supply chains following the Covid-19 pandemic.
Delays and price increases fueled a wave of inflation which is still affecting the global economy, prompting the European Union and United States to implement a risk-reduction strategy concerning China.
The United States is also keen to limit China's advancement in the production of cutting-edge technology, such as semiconductors necessary for the development of artificial intelligence.
Rich countries are likely to continue to lose manufacturing jobs, with the sector falling from 11.4 percent to 8.3 of the high-income workforce by 2050.
Manufacturing jobs are expected to hold steady across low-income countries at below 8 percent of total employment.
In fact, these countries are expected to see jobs shift from agriculture to the service sector, without experiencing a major transition in industrial jobs.
"This doesn't mean that poor countries will never escape poverty. New technologies and the shift to services which can be easily delivered across borders can be transformative," said Ranil Dissanayake, a senior fellow at CGD and an author of the study.
The study was conducted based on the projections of 59 countries representing approximately 75 percent of global GDP.
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