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China’s Customs Tariff Commission of the State Council announced on Monday tariffs on some imports will be reduced starting Jan 1.  Temporary tariff rates, which are set for a specified period, will be applied to 859 items. Designated items will enjoy import tariffs lower than the existing most-favored-nation rates in 2020. Tariffs on some high-tech …

The overall outlook for manufacturing remains sluggish, though electronics continue to recover and outperform the rest of the manufacturing sector (see data below).   The headline number was dragged down by orders for defense aircraft and parts, which plummeted 72.7% in November.   Stripping out defense goods, shipments were up 0.1% and orders up 0.8%. New Orders …

South Korea’s trade data in December show early monthly exports may decline less than double-digits for the first time since May, in another sign the global manufacturing slump is bottoming. Exports during the first 20 days of the month fell 2% from a year earlier. Shipments to China rose 5.3%, on a path for the …