SINGAPORE -- Manufacturing activities contracted in most Asian economies in January due to slowing global demand, with the Nikkei Purchasing Managers’ Index for ASEAN, Taiwan and Japan hitting the lowest in over a year.
The monthly Nikkei PMI survey asks companies in major Asian countries and regions, excluding China, about changes in output, orders and other business conditions compared with a month earlier. A PMI reading below 50 indicates contraction, while one above 50 points to expansion.
