BEIJING– China’s official nonmanufacturing purchasing managers index edged up to 55.2 in May from April’s 54.9, boosted by robust construction activities.
May’s reading was above the 50 mark, which separates activity expansion from contraction.
However, growth retreated in the subindex measuring business activity in the service industry. May’s reading slipped to 54.3, compared with 54.4 in April, according to data released Monday by the National Bureau of Statistics. Economists had expected consumption to be boosted by the five-day Labor Day holiday in May.
The subindex measuring construction activity climbed to 60.1 in May from April’s 57.4.
The recovery of the service industry is stable and the consumer market is showing positive recovery momentum, according to the statistics bureau.
The subindex measuring employment rose to 48.9 from April’s 48.7, remaining in contraction territory.
The nonmanufacturing PMI covers services such as retail, aviation and software, as well as the real estate and construction sectors. The data are based on replies to monthly questionnaires sent to purchasing executives at 4,000 companies in 37 nonmanufacturing sectors.
The official manufacturing PMI, also released Monday, dropped to 51.0 in May from 51.1 in April.