A staff member works at a workshop in Lin'an district of Hangzhou, east China's Zhejiang province, Jan 28, 2023. (PHOTO/XINHUA)

BEIJING - The purchasing managers' index (PMI) for China's manufacturing sector came in at 49.5 in October, down from 50.2 in the previous month, data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showed Tuesday.

A reading above 50 indicates expansion, while a reading below 50 reflects contraction.

The sub-index for large enterprises remained in the expansion zone at 50.7 in October, down from 51.6 in the previous month. The sub-index for production came in at 50.9, a drop from 52.7 a month earlier, affected by factors such as a high comparative basis in September and fewer working days in October due to the Mid-Autumn Festival and National Day holiday, according to NBS statistician Zhao Qinghe.

Senior NBS statistician Zhao Qinghe said the service sector sustained rapid development, boosted by tourism and consumption during the National Day holidays

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Enterprises anticipate manufacturing activities to pick up in the near term, with the sub-index for production and business expectations at 55.6, up from 55.5 in September and above 55 for four consecutive months.

Non-manufacturing PMI at 50.6

China's non-manufacturing activity maintained expansion in October, thanks to recovering services and a robust construction industry, data showed Tuesday.

The PMI for the country's non-manufacturing sector came in at 50.6 in October, according to the NBS.

A reading above 50 indicates expansion, while a reading below 50 reflects contraction.

Zhao said the service sector sustained rapid development, boosted by tourism and consumption during the National Day holidays. Additionally, the construction industry also registered expansion.

The sub-index for the service sector was 50.1 in October. In particular, business activities in transport, accommodation and catering stood well above 55.

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The construction sector maintained brisk growth this month with its sub-index for business activities standing at 53.5, Zhao noted.

The sub-index measuring expectations for activities in the sector came in at 61.4, indicating optimism among construction enterprises.