Signs of growth pick-up in emerging markets: HSBC survey
Emerging markets ended 2012 with a modest acceleration in economic growth thanks to a pick-up in manufacturing activity that hints at further improvement in coming months, a survey found on Thursday. All four big BRIC economies posted a rise in economic activity in the last quarter of 2012, with Chinese manufacturing returning to growth for the first time in 18 months, according to HSBC's emerging markets index (EMI).
The EMI, based on 23 service and manufacturing purchasing managers' surveys conducted in 18 countries, rose to 52.9, up marginally from 52.2 in the July-September quarter. While the index is under its post-financial-crisis average of 54.4, it is inching further away from the 50 mark that separates growth from contraction.
"The main message is that emerging markets ended the year with a slightly better tone. We saw improvement in the last quarter and two weeks into 2013, individual PMIs in China and Asia have shown improvement," said Murat Ulgen, chief economist for CEEMEA at HSBC.
Various surveys show activity across Asia rose in December, with China's official purchasing managers' index matching November's seven-month high. Services growth accelerated to the fastest in four months .
"There is a glimmer of hope that this momentum can continue in the first quarter of 2013," Ulgen said. The survey revealed that Brazilian and Chinese manufacturing had returned to growth while India, Mexico, Turkey and Russia expanded at a faster clip than the previous quarter. Russian output grew at the fastest rate since mid-2010.
Service sector activity across emerging markets also
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