An employee works on the production line of a combine harvester manufacturer in Qingzhou, Shandong province. (WANG JILIN/FOR CHINA DAILY)

China's factory activity gauge improved marginally in September, but was still below the 50-point mark that separates contraction from expansion, official data showed on Monday.

国家统计局周一公布数据显示，9月，制造业生产活动加快，但仍不及荣枯线。

Data from the National Bureau of Statistics showed that China's official purchasing managers index for the manufacturing sector came in at 49.8 in September, up from 49.1 in August. The figure remained in contraction for a fifth consecutive month in September.

9月，制造业采购经理指数（PMI）、非制造业商务活动指数和综合PMI产出指数分别为50.2%、51.7%和52%，比上月上升0.5、0.7和0.7个百分点，其中制造业PMI系时隔5个月重返扩张区间。

Zhao Qinghe, an NBS statistician, explained that September's manufacturing uptick was supported by a recovery in both supply and demand, with improvement in the subindexes for production and new orders.

国家统计局服务业调查中心高级统计师赵庆河表示，9月制造业的增长受到供需两方面复苏的支持，生产和新订单分类指数有所改善。

The sub-index for production was 51.2 in September versus 49.8 in August, while the gauge for new orders came in at 49.9 in September, up from 48.9 in August, the NBS reported.

分类指数方面，生产指数为51.2%，比上月上升1.4个百分点，升至临界点以上；新订单指数为49.9%，比上月上升1.0个百分点，创5个月新高；

China's non-manufacturing PMI, which includes subindexes for service sector activity and construction, came in at 50 in September, down from 50.3 in August. Official services PMI meanwhile declined to 49.9 in September from 50.2 in August.

非制造业PMI方面，9月，非制造业商务活动指数为50.0%，比上月下降0.3个百分点。分行业看，建筑业商务活动指数上升0.1个百分点至50.7%，服务业商务活动指数下降0.3个百分点至49.9%。

The country's official composite PMI, which encompasses both manufacturing and non-manufacturing activities, rose from 50.1 in August to 50.4 in September, remaining in the expansion territory.

随着供需两端受到有效提振，制造业PMI指数最快将在10月升至50%以上，重返扩张区间，整个四季度制造业PMI指数都可能运行在扩张区间。

Source:chinadaily

Editor:ChenDawei

Senior Editor:PangBo