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Japan’s manufacturing activity expanded for the first time in seven months in May, while the service-sector hit record growth, a survey showed on Tuesday, as the post-COVID recovery shored up business conditions.
The au Jibun Bank flash Japan manufacturing purchasing managers’ index (PMI) rose to a seasonally adjusted 50.8 in May, from a final 49.5 in April. It’s the PMI’s first reading above 50, which separates contraction from expansion, since October.
Output and new orders also returned to expansion territory for the first time since last June.
Manufacturers in the survey suggested supply chain disruption brought by the pandemic which battered the sector showed “signs of improvement”.
