US and China PMI for April- US manufacturing output close to stagnation while PMI signals further marginal deterioration in China’s operating conditions: Purchasing Manager’s Indices for both the United States and China were released on 2 May. Markit’s survey for the United States pointed to the weakest performance since September 2009, with production volumes and payroll figures increasing only fractionally. The US PMI for April registered at 50.8, down from 51.5 in March. China’s manufacturing PMI for April registered at 49.4, down from 49.7 in March. A reading of 50.0 is considered neutral, with increases or decreases in either direction as positive or negative, respectively. With regard to the US manufacturing PMI survey, Markit’s chief economist Chris Williamson is quoted as saying “The survey indicates that factory output is dropping at an annualized rate of approximately 3%, and factory headcounts are being culled at a rate of around 10k per month.”