MW: India's manufacturing activity gains in November
By Myra P. Saefong
TOKYO (MarketWatch) -- India's manufacturing activity strengthened further in November and the strong growth momentum is showing up in rising inflation pressures, according to an HSBC survey released Wednesday. The HSBC Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index rose to 58.4 in November from 57.2 in October, the survey said. November marked the 20th straight month that the PMI stayed above the 50-point level, which separates expansion from contraction in the level of activity at local factories. "A spike in the backlog of works confirms that capacity is tight, which together with rising input and output prices strengthens the case for continued tightening by the Reserve Bank of India," HSBC said, adding that rate hikes are expected to resume in early 2011. Following the data, India's Sensex (XX:SENSEX 19,828, +306.88, +1.57%) traded up 1%.
