BEIJING — China’s factory activity weakened further in December, an official survey showed Monday, boosting pressure on Beijing to reverse an economic slowdown as it heads into trade talks with Washington.

The purchasing managers’ index of the National Bureau of Statistics and an industry group, the China Federation of Logistics & Purchasing, fell to 49.4 from November’s 50.0 on a 100-point scale on which numbers below 50 show activity contracting.

Chinese economic growth sank to a post-global crisis low of 6.5 percent over a year earlier in the quarter that ended in September despite government efforts to reverse the downturn by ordering banks to lend more and boosting spending on public works construction.

Forecasters expect annual growth of about 6.5 percent, down slightly from 2017’s 6.7 percent. But some industry segments including auto and real estate sales have suffered more serious declines.

“Downward pressure on the economy is still large,” economist Zhang Liqun said in a statement issued with the PMI.

Overall orders and exports both contracted, indicating Chinese factories are suffering from weak demand at home and abroad.

Exports to the United States kept growing at double-digit monthly rates through late 2018 despite President Trump’s punitive tariffs.

But growth in exports to the rest of the world fell sharply in November and forecasters expect American demand to weaken in early 2019.

That adds to complications for Chinese leaders who are trying to reverse a broad economic slowdown and avert politically dangerous job losses.

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