Asia’s factories shaking off COVID gloom, China shines

FILE PHOTO: A man in a bicycle drives past containers at an industrial port in Tokyo, Japan, May 22, 2019. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon/File PhotoAsian factories continued to shake off the coronavirus-induced gloom in August as more bright signs in China raised hopes of a firmer recovery in global demand, reducing pressure on policymakers to take more radical steps to avert a deeper recession.

But fears of a resurgence in infections in some economies may discourage firms from boosting capital expenditure and delay a sustained rebound for the Asian region, some analysts say. China's Caixin/Markit Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index rose to 53.1 in August from July's 52.8, marking the sector's fourth consecutive month of growth and the biggest rate of expansion since January 2011.

But many analysts expect any recovery to be feeble as renewed waves of infections dent business activity and prevent many nations from fully re-opening their economies. South Korea's PMI also rose to 48.5 in August from 46.9 in July, the highest reading since February, though it remained below the 50-mark threshold that separates growth from contraction for an eighth straight month.

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