India’s mfg activity expands at a slower pace in November

India’s manufacturing activity expanded in November, butat a slower pace than in recent months, with the HSBC India Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) for the month easing to 56.6 from 59.2 in October, as per a release from S&P Global on Monday.

- Sreedev Krishnakumar

A reading above 50 indicates expansion from the previous month. The latest print, while comfortably above the long-run average of 54.2, signalled the slowest improvement in operating conditions since February. The final November PMI was also weaker than the earlier flash estimate of 57.4, which is calculated from 80-90% of total survey responses.

Manufacturers continued to reporta rise in total new orders, aided by competitive pricing and healthy domestic demand. But the pace of growth eased to a nine-month low, with firms citing challenging market conditions, delayed project starts and stiff competition. Output growth also softened, marking its weakest expansion since February.