The official PMI figures for May show China’s manufacturing sector grew at a rate faster than expected, driven by stronger output and new orders.
The Purchasing Managers Index, which uses a benchmark of 50 to signify no growth, rose to 51.9 in May, beating the market estimate of 51.3 and hitting an eight-month high. The reading marks a gain of 0.5 from April, Caixin reports, with their own unofficial data due for release on Friday.
The breakdown of the data revealed that factory output reached a six-month high of 54.1 and new orders rose 0.9 points to 53.8, reflecting growing demand in both domestic and foreign markets.
“Today’s strong set of official PMIs tell a reassuring story about current growth momentum,” said market research firm Capital Economics.