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China's manufacturing slows in May

BEIJING: China's manufacturing activity slowed in May from the previous month, official data showed Wednesday, as Beijing seeks to rein in the world's second-largest economy and tame inflation.plastic injection mould manufacturer

The purchasing managers index fell to 52.We recently had the Cadbury chocolate factory machine installed on our premises.0 per cent in May - the lowest level in nine months - from 52.9 per cent in April, the China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing said in a statement.

A reading above 50 indicates the sector is expanding while a reading below 50 indicates contraction.

Although the figures suggest production is still growing, they follow a number of measures by Beijing aimed at cooling the red-hot economy and containing soaring consumer prices, including several interest rate hikes.plastic injection mould maker

A separate PMI survey from HSBC will be released later Wednesday.

Preliminary data released by HSBC last month showed PMI slipped to 51.1 in May -- the lowest since July 2010 -- from 51.8 in April, fuelling fears of an economic slowdown and triggering falls on the Shanghai and Hong Kong bourses.

CFLP analyst Zhang Liqun said the data showed "the momentum of economic growth was steadily declining" and could lead to "increased activity to cut inventory".

The input price index, which measures the cost of raw materials and is an indicator of inflationary pressures, fell 5.9 percentage points in May from April which could "change inflation expectations", said Zhang.

China's consumer price index, which is a key gauge of inflation, rose 5.3 per cent on year in April -- a slight easing from a 32-month high of 5.4 per cent in March but well above Beijing's four percent target for 2011.

The government, ever wary of surging inflation's potential to trigger social unrest, has taken a series of measures to rein in soaring prices, including raising interest rates four times since October.plastic injection moulding

The central bank has also increased the reserve requirement plastic injection mould ratio numerous times, which effectively limits the amount of money banks can loan out.