RatingDog China manufacturing PMI 52.1 tops forecast, services 51.6 also beats

Stronger readings from both surveys, ahead of a week-long Chinese holiday, give China-sensitive assets a supportive last data point before mainland markets close. The rise in manufacturers' input costs, driven by metals and oil, is the detail most relevant to commodity markets, since it suggests firms are absorbing higher energy and raw material prices rather than cutting purchases. Services firms cut selling prices at the fastest rate in almost four and a half years, which points to margin pressure and to deflationary competition in the sector even as activity picks up. Traders are likely to weigh these private-sector readings against the official surveys, and the gap between the two sets of data will matter for how much of the improvement the market believes. --- China's private-sector PMIs all rose in September, with manufacturing at a five-month high and services growth quickening, though services firms cut prices at the fastest pace in almost four and a half years. Summary: The RatingDog China General Manufacturing PMI rose to 52.1 from 51.5, above the 51.6 forecast and the highest in five months, the tenth month above 50. The Services PMI rose to 51.6 from 51.4, above the 51.1 forecast, and marked the fastest growth in three months. The Composite PMI rose to 52.4 from 52.1, the strongest in three months but slightly below the 2026 average. Manufacturers reported the strongest input price inflation in four months, driven by metals and oil, and lifted selling prices slightly after a marginal cut in August. Services firms cut output prices for the first time in four months and at the fastest rate in almost four and a half years, while composite selling prices fell for the first time in nine months. New export orders rose in both sectors, and business confidence improved at the composite level to a four-month high. Earlier we had official PMIs, also improved: China official manufacturing PMI (September): 50.1 (expected 50.1, prior 49.8) The RatingDog China General