China's PMI rises to 50.5 pct in Jan

 　　China's Purchasing Managers Index (PMI), a preliminary readout of the country's manufacturing activity, rose to 50.5 percent in January of 2012, the highest level since October, indicating that a slowdown in the world's second-largest economy may be stabilizing¹.

　　The country's PMI stood at 50.3 percent in December, 49 percent in November and 50.4 percent in October, the China Federation² of Logistics and Purchasing (CFLP) said Wednesday in a statement on its website.

　　A PMI reading of 50 percent demarcates expansion from contraction³.

　　The CFLP's sub-index for new orders hit 50.4 percent in January, up 0.6percentage points from December, suggesting that the week-long Spring Festival holiday helped boost the country's domestic consumption.

　　The sub-index for purchase prices rose 2.9 percentage points from December to 50 percent in January.

　　Last month, nine industries, including tobacco and beverage⁴ manufacturing, agricultural food processing and food production, enjoyed a PMI of over 50 percent, while sectors⁵ including wood processing and furniture manufacturing registered under 50 percent, according to the statement.

　　The CFLP's PMI is based on a survey of purchasing managers in 820 companies in 20 industries.

　　However, China plans to expand the sample size for measuring the PMI from the current 820 companies to around 3,000 companies, the National Bureau of Statistics and the CFLP said Tuesday at a news briefing, without giving a specific timetable for the changes.

1 stabilizing   

n.稳定化处理[退火]v.（使）稳定， （使）稳固( stabilize的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• The disulfide bridges might then be viewed primarily as stabilizing components. 二硫桥可以被看作是初级的稳定因素。 来自辞典例句
• These stabilizing design changes are usually not desirable for steady-state operation. 这些增加稳定性的设计改变通常不太符合稳态工作的要求。 来自辞典例句

2 federation   

n.同盟，联邦，联合，联盟，联合会

参考例句：

• It is a federation of 10 regional unions.它是由十个地方工会结合成的联合会。
• Mr.Putin was inaugurated as the President of the Russian Federation.普京正式就任俄罗斯联邦总统。

3 contraction   

n.缩略词，缩写式，害病

参考例句：

• The contraction of this muscle raises the lower arm.肌肉的收缩使前臂抬起。
• The forces of expansion are balanced by forces of contraction.扩张力和收缩力相互平衡。

4 beverage   

n.(水，酒等之外的)饮料

参考例句：

• The beverage is often colored with caramel.这种饮料常用焦糖染色。
• Beer is a beverage of the remotest time.啤酒是一种最古老的饮料。

5 sectors   

n.部门( sector的名词复数 )；领域；防御地区；扇形

参考例句：

• Berlin was divided into four sectors after the war. 战后柏林分成了4 个区。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Industry and agriculture are the two important sectors of the national economy. 工业和农业是国民经济的两个重要部门。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》