The purchasing managers’ index (PMI) for China’s non-manufacturing sector slipped for a third straight month in January due to a slowdown in the real estate sector, new data showed. The index dropped to 53.4 percent last month, the lowest since February 2012, from 54.6 percent in December, according to official figures released on Monday. The index tracks non-manufacturing sectors including construction, software, aviation, railway transport and real estate. A PMI reading above 50 percent indicates expansion, while a reading below 50 percent reflects contraction. The monthly indicator is released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) and the China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing (CFLP). CFLP Vice Chairman Cai Jin attributed the drop mainly to a slowdown in the real estate sector in the past two months. The price index for real estate dropped to below 50 percent from December to January, while that […]