Manufacturing exercise in India moderated in December, whereas nonetheless outperforming Asian friends as new orders and enterprise confidence continued to develop.

The HSBC India manufacturing buying managers’ index got here in at 54.9 final month, down from 56 in November, the financial institution mentioned Wednesday. The December studying was the weakest in 18 months, because the tempo of manufacturing facility orders and output misplaced momentum. Readings above 50 point out growth.