China's business activity rises at fastest pace since June 2024

China's private sector activity expanded at a faster pace in September, supported by growth in both the services and manufacturing sectors, S&P Global reported Tuesday.

The RatingDog China composite purchasing managers' index grew at the fastest pace since June 2024, rising to 52.5 in September from 51.9 in August.

A reading above the 50.0 neutral mark indicates an overall increase in business activity from the previous month, while a reading below signals a contraction.

Specifically, the general services PMI fell slightly to 52.9 in September, down from 53.0 in August.

A lower reading of 52.3 was expected according to the consensus forecast cited by FXStreet.

Survey feedback indicated that a recovery in tourism was a key driving factor for the sector, and business confidence improved to a six-month high.

"Although growth in total new orders eased from the previous month, it continued to show a strong expansionary trend. Future business activity expectations remained at a high level, with the reading rising continuously since April 2025," said RatingDog founder Yao Yu. "However, the contraction in employment intensified, primarily due to cost control measures such as staff resignations and redundancies."

Meanwhile, the RatingDog manufacturing PMI rose to 51.2 in September, up from 50.5 in August and surpassing the forecast of 50.3.

Yu said: "Notably, the sub-indices for both demand and production remained in expansion territory. On the demand side, new orders performed well, while new export orders returned to growth for the first time since March 2025.

"Although new export orders rose only modestly, it was still a relatively positive signal, alleviating some market concerns over the recent weakness in exports."

Looking ahead, survey feedback indicated that sentiment regarding the outlook for the next year has improved in China's manufacturing sector, with producers expecting supportive government policies to increase sales and boost production.

S&P Global compiles the PMI figures each month using survey responses from a panel of around 650 private and state-owned service sector companies and manufacturers. The composite figure is a weighted average of the services and manufacturing indices.