The purchasing managers' index (PMI) for China's manufacturing sector stood at 49.8 in August, up 0.6 percentage points from July, official data showed. A reading above 50 indicates expansion, while a reading below 50 indicates contraction.

In August, the manufacturing sector's overall business climate saw notable improvement, said Huo Lihui, a chief statistician with the National Bureau of Statistics, citing that among the 21 industries surveyed, 16 reported a higher PMI compared with the previous month.

This sector saw expansion in both manufacturing output and market demand in August. The production sub-index and new orders index climbed to 50.4 and 50.6, up 0.5 percentage points and 2.1 percentage points from July.

Driven by the pick-up in both production and orders, enterprises' willingness to purchase strengthened, with the procurement volume index reaching 50.5, up 1.1 percentage points from the previous month, said Huo.

The development momentum of new growth drivers continued to improve in August, she said.

The PMI for the equipment manufacturing industry and the high-tech manufacturing industry stood at 51.4 and 52.9, respectively, both remaining in the expansion zone.

The PMI for large manufacturing enterprises came in at 50.6, up 1.1 percentage points from the previous month and returning to the expansion zone. (Xinhua)