Three contenders compete for the heavyweight PMI crown. The reigning champion is the China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing (CFLP) PMI, which weighs in with the largest sample and the most comprehensive publicly available data set.
The main challenger is the HSBC Markit PMI, which suffers from a smaller sample set but boasts complete independence from the controlling government hands.
The plucky outsider, hoping to land a few quick jabs by publishing results early and covering a different set of questions, is the Market News International (MNI) survey.