Service activity index rises in Feb

By Wang Yanlin; | March 5, 2014, Wednesday |

Online Edition

China's service activity among private companies strengthened in February, in line with the performance of their state-owned counterparts, a survey showed this morning.

The HSBC China Services Business Activity Index, a gauge of operating conditions in private service companies, posted 51 last month, up from 50.7 in January, according to HSBC Holdings plc and consulting firm Markit.

A reading above 50 means expansion, and the latest index signaled faster expansion in the service sector though growth remained marginal.

In comparison, China's official non-manufacturing Business Activity Index, compiled by the China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing and slanted toward state-owned enterprises, rose 1.6 points from a month earlier to a three-month high of 55 in February, the National Bureau of Statistics said on Monday.

Qu Hongbin, chief economist for China at HSBC, said the indices suggest service sector growth is stabilizing, albeit at a relatively low level.

"However, combined with the weaker manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index, the overall strength of economic growth is moderating and this is starting to weigh on employment growth," Qu said.

He said policymakers "can and should fine tune policy to avoid growth deceleration in the first half of this year."

The latest data indicated divergent trends across manufacturing and service sectors, reflecting China's efforts to restructure the economy that create assessment difficulties.

Economy

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Service activity index rises in Feb

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