Global factory growth remained muted in November

Global manufacturing growth remained tepid in November as new orders came in at a slower pace and factories ran down existing orders, a survey showed on Tuesday. J.P. Morgan's Global Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI), produced with Markit, came in at 51.2 last month, just below October's five-month high of 51.3. "The rate of expansion signalled by the headline PMI remained relatively lacklustre nonetheless, meaning that November continued the subdued run of data for the global manufacturing sector through 2015 so far," J.P. Morgan said.
The index has now been above the 50 mark that separates growth from contraction for three years but some of that expansion would have been driven by factories cutting prices for a fifth month to encourage trade. Despite the discounting, a new orders sub index fell to 51.5 from 52.0 in October. The global PMI combines survey data from countries including the United States, Japan, Germany, France, Britain, China and Russia.