(Adds dropped words in paragraph 2) MEXICO CITY, Dec 1 (Reuters) - The health of Mexico’s factories improved slightly in November, though the last time the manufacturing sector was in growth territory was in October 2019, as the economic fallout of the coronavirus pandemic weighs on business, a survey showed on Tuesday. The IHS Markit Mexico Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index edged minimally higher to 43.7 in November from 43.6 in October, again well below the 50-threshold that marks the boundary between contraction and expansion. The index is still gradually clawing its way back after plunging to 35.0 in April, the lowest point in the survey’s nine-year history. “Mexico’s manufacturing downturn showed no signs of abating, with PMI data for November highlighting sharper contractions in output, exports and total sales. With demand being unresponsive to price-discounting strategies, a recovery in the near-term seems unlikely,” said Pollyanna De Lima, economics associate director at IHS Markit. In any case, Mexico’s economy has begun recovering from the depths it hit after coronavirus lockdown measures were put in place. Mexico’s economy grew 12.1% between July and September from the previous three-month period, bouncing back strongly, even as it was 8.6% smaller than the same period a year earlier. De Lima said employment, input buying and stocks all remained in negative territory in November and “pointed to ongoing difficulties among producers, who continue to keep a lid on costs amid future uncertainty.” Businesses have excess capacity and foresee lower production volumes over the coming 12 months, De Lima noted. “Anecdotal evidence provided by survey members largely linked the deterioration in the health of the sector to the COVID-19 pandemic and controls imposed to stop the disease from spreading. Many firms associated the downturn in sales with their clients’ businesses being closed,” she said. The PMI index tracks developments on a range of business indicators including prices, new orders, output, employment, suppliers’ delivery times and stocks of raw materials. (Reporting by Anthony Esposito Editing by Paul Simao) Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.