HANOI, June 3 (Xinhua) -- Vietnam's Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI), which measures the economic health of the country's manufacturing sector, inched down to 52.0 in May from 52.2 in April, but still registered an improvement in business conditions, the latest survey from Nikkei revealed on Monday.
The softer improvement in the health of the sector was recorded in spite of stronger increases in both output and new orders compared to April.
The investment goods sector was the best performing broad manufacturing category in May, posting the fastest expansions of output, new orders and new export orders.
Business confidence improved for the third month in a row, reaching the highest level since last November. Optimism regarding output growth reflected expected increases in new orders and new product launches, said the report.
However, employment decreased for the third time in the past four months amid reports of worker resignations and retirements, which led the PMI to tick lower. The situation is said to be reversed in the coming months if the demand side remains strong and firms are able to replace departed workers.
Vietnam's PMI ranked the second in Southeast Asia last month, led by Myanmar with 54.2, according to the survey.
A PMI reading above 50 indicates an expansion of the manufacturing sector compared to the previous month; below 50 represents a contraction; while 50 indicates no change.
