China's purchasing managers' index (PMI) for the manufacturing sector rose to 51.4 percent in October, hitting a new high since May 2012, the official statistical agency said Friday.
The figure was 0.3 percentage points higher than September, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), reports Xinhua.
China's manufacturing PMI increased for four consecutive months, showing a steady upward trend in manufacturing. A figure above 50 percent signals expansion.
Zhao Qinghe, a senior NBS statistician, attributed the strong PMI to expanding production, and confidence boosted by government measures this year to stabilise growth and restructure the economy.
The sub-index for production rose for the fourth month to 54.4 percent, up 1.5 percentage points from September.
As production picked up, companies bought more raw materials, driving the sub-index for materials buying up 0.2 percentage points to 52.7.
"Although the manufacturing PMI rose for the fourth month, forces that drove up the index were not balanced, as sub-indices other than production were relatively weak," Zhao said.
The NBS sub-index for employment and raw material inventories both rose slightly by 0.1 percentage points, but still under 50 percent.
