The seasonally adjusted Absa Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) rose by 0.9 points to 49.6 in October, up from a revised 48.7 in September. That is a second consecutive monthly improvement, and all five components of the headline index increased. The survey is compiled by the Bureau for Economic Research (BER) at Stellenbosch University and sponsored by Absa. A reading of 50 separates expansion from contraction, so manufacturing remains just short of it.

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