Manufacturing PMI 49.2 in April vs 51.9 in March
Nonmanufacturing PMI 56.4 vs 58.2 in March

BEIJING, April 30 Reuters China39;s manufacturing activity unexpectedly shrank in April, official data showed on Sunday, raising pressure on policymakers seeking to boost an economy struggling for a postCOVID liftoff amid subdued global demand and persistent property weakness.

The official manufacturing purchasing managers39; index PMI declined to 49.2 from 51.9 in March, according to data from the National Bureau of Statistics, below the 50point mark that separates expansion and contraction in activity on a monthly basis.

That missed expectations of 51.4 tipped by economists in a Reuters poll and marked the first contraction since December, when the official manufacturing PMI was at 47.0.

The world39;s secondbiggest economy grew faster than expected in the first quarter thanks to robust services consumption, but factory output has lagged amid weak global growth. Slowing prices and surging bank savings are raising doubts about demand.

The Politburo, a top decisionmaking body of the ruling Communist Party, on Friday stressed that restoring and expanding demand is the key to a durable recovery and cautioned the current improvement is mainly restorative with weak momentum and insufficient demand.

A lack of market demand and the highbase effect from the quick manufacturing recovery in the first quarter were among factors that led to the contraction in April, said senior NBS…