China's manufacturing growth slows to 7-month low in June

China's manufacturing sector expanded at its slowest pace in the last seven months, with the purchasing managers index (PMI) for the sector easing further to 50.2 percent in June, according to official survey results published on Sunday.

The PMI reading of the manufacturing sector, which measures the country's factory activity, retreated 0.2 percentage points from May and marked the slowest pace in seven months.

The official PMI data released by the China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing (CFLP) and the National Bureau of Statistics suggested the manufacturing sector is still expanding even though the growth has slowed.

A reading of 50 percent demarcates expansion from contraction.

For the second quarter, the manufacturing PMI was 51.3 percent, according to the CFLP.

"The PMI moderation in June was driven partly by seasonal factors," Cai Jin, president of the CFLP, said, noting similar slowdowns had occurred in June of previous years.

"Compared with past years, the extent of the slowdown in June this year is minimal, suggesting the economy is building the foundation for a stabilized growth, but the downward pressure still exists," Cai said.

The manufacturing PMI bounced above the contraction level marked in last November when the reading was 49 percent, with 50.3 percent for last December, 50.5 percent for January, 51 percent for February, 53.1 percent for March, 53.3 percent for April and 50.4 percent for May.