China's April factory activity contracts amid Shanghai lockdown

© Reuters. FILE PHOTO: Workers wearing masks are Forexseen walking outside their dormitory, in an electronics manufacturing factory in Shanghai, China, as the country is hit by an outbreak of a new coronavirus, February 12, 2020. REUTERS/Aly Song

BEIJING (Reuters) - China's factory activity contracted at a steeper pace in April, as widespread COVID-19 lockdowns curbed production and disrupted supply chains, an official survey showed on Saturday.

The official manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) fell to 47.4 in April from 49.5 in March, for a second straight month of contraction, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said. The 50-point mark separates contraction from growth on a monthly basis.

A Reuters poll had expected the PMI to ease to 48.

Dozens of China's major cities are in full or partial lockdowns, including the commercial hub of Shanghai, spurring more analysts to cut growth forecasts for the world's second-largest economy.

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