HONG KONG: Brokerage CLSA says its China Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) rose to 50.1 in April from 44.8 in March, the first time the index, which measures manufacturing activity, has moved into positive territory since July 2008.
“China's government has been extremely successful in stimulating investment and, combined with a sharp improvement in export orders, this has pushed the PMI back into positive territory,” said CLSA's head of economic research Eric Fishwick.
At the same time, bank ABN AMRO's PMI in India rose to 53.3 in April, up from 49.5. This is its highest point since October last year.
With the Japan stock market closed for a holiday, shares in the Asia-Pacific region rose nearly 5% on Monday, taking the two-month rally to 45% from early March lows.
The region received a further economic boost on Sunday, when 13 counties in Asia agreed to set up a $120bn (€90bn; £80bn) emergency fund to help weather the financial storm.
“China's government has been extremely successful in stimulating investment and, combined with a sharp improvement in export orders, this has pushed the PMI back into positive territory,” said CLSA's head of economic research Eric Fishwick.
At the same time, bank ABN AMRO's PMI in India rose to 53.3 in April, up from 49.5. This is its highest point since October last year.
With the Japan stock market closed for a holiday, shares in the Asia-Pacific region rose nearly 5% on Monday, taking the two-month rally to 45% from early March lows.
The region received a further economic boost on Sunday, when 13 counties in Asia agreed to set up a $120bn (€90bn; £80bn) emergency fund to help weather the financial storm.
Data sourced from Financial Times; additional content by WARC staff
