China factory gauge hits nine-month low, HSBC says

LOS ANGELES (MarketWatch)
HSBC's preliminary reading of Chinese manufacturing activity dropped to 47.8 for the current month from a final print of 49.3 in July, the bank said Thursday, marking the worst result in nine months
The flash version of the China manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index remained below 50 for the 10th month in a row
The flash result is based on 85% to 90% of the total responses to the survey
Chinese stocks reversed direction after the result, with the Shanghai Composite Index swinging to a 0.3% loss