Asia factories struggle for momentum amid patchy recovery

Sluggish global demand still a major challenge for many big exporters

Factories in Asia's largest economies stepped up a gear in May as supply chain problems eased, business surveys showed on Thursday, but sluggish global demand remained a major challenge for many of the region's big exporters.

Purchasing managers' indexes (PMIS) for China and Japan showed swings in factory activity to growth in the month, in contrast to weak indicators from South Korea, Vietnam and Taiwan where declines continued.

India's factory activity expanded at the quickest pace since October 2020, a sign that strong demand and output were supporting Asia's third-largest economy.

The patchy set of PMIs pointed to an uneven recovery from the pandemic, particularly in China, the world's second-largest economy, and clouded the outlook for growth in the region, but still provided some cause for optimism.