New business cooled last month to slightly weaken growth in China’s services sector, Reuters reported, citing the latest HSBC/Markit purchasing managers’ index. The index pulled back to 53.5 in September from a 17-month high of 54.1 in August, 0.6 points closer to the threshold marking the difference between expansion and contraction in activity. A sub-index measuring new business fell to 53.2 in September from a 19-month high of 53.9 in August, but sub-indexes measuring employment and outstanding business both inched up, painting a mixed picture. Growth in China’s retail sales during the long Golden Week holiday in October slowed to 12.1% from a 13.6% rise in the same period last year, data from the Ministry of Commerce showed.
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