Asia's factories end the year on a weak footing as Trump 2.0 risks mount
The Straits Times|January 03, 2025
Asian factory powerhouses ended 2024 on a soft note as expectations for 2025 soured amid growing trade risks from a second Donald Trump presidency and persistently weak Chinese demand.

A series of manufacturing purchasing managers' indexes (PMIs) for December from across the region published on Jan 2 showed factory activity slowing in China and South Korea, although there were some signs of a pickup in Taiwan and South-east Asia.

Trump has pledged to impose big tariffs on imports from three major trading partners - Mexico, Canada and China - which are expected to affect other large exporting nations and global business activity.

The Caixin/S&P Global manufacturing PMI for China nudged down to 50.5 in December from 51.5 in November, undershooting analysts' forecasts, indicating activity grew only modestly. That echoed an official survey released earlier this week, which showed factory activity barely growing.

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