Caixin service PMI falls to six-month low in March

BEIJING - China's service sector continued to slow in March, as a private survey showed Thursday that an index for the sector fell to a six-month low.

The Caixin General Services Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) slipped to 52.2 in March from 52.6 in February, according to the survey conducted by financial information service provider Markit and sponsored by Caixin Media Co Ltd.

A reading above 50 indicates expansion, while a reading below 50 represents contraction.

The decline follows a drop in the Caixin China General Manufacturing PMI to 51.2 last month from 51.7 in February. As a result, the Caixin China Composite Output Index, which covers both manufacturing and services, fell to 52.1 in March from 52.6 the previous month, the lowest number since September.

The readings of the Caixin indexes for March contrast with the official PMIs released by the National Bureau of Statistics, partly due to the types of companies included in the surveys.

Official non-manufacturing PMI rose to 55.1 last month from 54.2 in February, the highest since May 2014, while the manufacturing PMI climbed to 51.8 from 51.6 in February, the strongest reading since April 2012.

Services industries have become an increasingly important part of the Chinese economy, reflecting its shift away from traditional heavy-industry manufacturing and exports.