Nikkei HK PMI rises to 45.7 in September vs August's 44.4

    The Nikkei Hong Kong Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) remained below the neutral 50.0 threshold at 45.7 in September, up from August's 76-month low of 44.4, and signalled a further deterioration in the health of Hong Kong's private sector, according to Markit.
  Despite easing since the previous month, the rate of worsening was still one of the sharpest seen since early-2009.
  Operating conditions faced by Hong Kong private sector companies continued to deteriorate markedly in September. Though the rates of contraction eased since the previous month, both output and new orders fell sharply amid a steep decline in new work from Mainland China. Lower production requirements led firms to cut their purchasing activity again, while stocks of inputs fell for the eighth month in a row. On a more positive note, the pace of job shedding eased in September, with the latest reduction in staff numbers the slowest seen in a year. 
  "The global economic slowdown continued to weigh on the performance of Hong Kong's private sector at the end of the third quarter, with the latest PMI data pointing to further marked falls in output and new business. Of particular concern was the steepest fall in new business from Mainland China since the global financial crisis, which was partly driven by the recent devaluation of the yuan. Overall, PMI data for Q3 suggest that the sector suffered its worst performance since Q2 2009. Furthermore, it's likely this downward trend will extend into the final quarter of 2015 unless demand conditions and new orders improve.", said Annabel Fiddes, Economist at Markit.