China’s composite purchasing managers’ index (PMI) slipped from 54.0 in July to 53.0 in August, according to a survey released by S&P Global and Caixin Media.

The index was above the 50 mark, which separates expansion from contraction. Released in the same survey, the services PMI dropped from 55.5 in July to 55.0 in August.

For Wang Zhe, an economist at Caixin, rare high temperatures and sporadic outbreaks of covid-19 were the main factors that weighed on the economy in August.

“The impact of extreme weather was more significant than that of outbreaks. The resulting power outages restricted manufacturing to production, while service providers remained largely unchanged. The manufacturing sector benefited more from lower expenses as a result of the fall in commodity prices than the services sector,” he says.