BEIJING (Reuters) - Factory activity in China shrank in August for the fourth month in a row, official data showed on Saturday, as the United States ramped up tariff pressure and domestic demand remained sluggish.
The Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) fell to 49.5 in August, China's National Bureau of Statistics said, versus 49.7 in July, below the 50-point mark that separates growth from contraction on a monthly basis.
Analysts polled by Reuters had expected the August headline reading would be unchanged from the previous month.
Further signs of contraction in China's factory activity suggest the world's second-biggest economy is continuing to lose momentum, heightening fears of a global recession.
(This story orrects headline month to August, not July)
(Reporting by Roxanne Liu and Dominique Patton; Editing by Clarence Fernandez)
