BEIJING—China's official Purchasing Managers Index fell to 52.9 in January from 53.9 in December, said the China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing, which issues the data with the National Bureau of Statistics, in a statement Tuesday.
The fall in the PMI indicates the growth of manufacturing activity slowed for the second consecutive month in January, which may help alleviate concerns about overheating and inflation.
A PMI reading above 50 indicates an expansion in manufacturing activity, while a reading below 50 indicates contraction.
Meanwhile, the input prices subindex, a leading indicator of inflation pressures, rose to 69.3 from 66.7 in December.
The continued rise in the input price index shows that "companies are facing relatively large difficulties," CFLP analyst Zhang Liqun said in a statement.
