1st LD-Writethru: China's non-manufacturing sector expands in November

BEIJING, Nov. 30 (Xinhua) -- China's non-manufacturing sector expanded at a slightly faster pace in November, the National Bureau of Statistics said on Thursday.

The non-manufacturing purchasing managers' index (PMI) came in at 54.8 in November, up from 54.3 in October.

A reading above 50 indicates expansion, while a reading below that reflects contraction.

The service sector, which accounted for more than half of the country's gross domestic product (GDP), continued steady growth, with the sector's business activity index standing at 53.6 in November, up 0.1 percentage point month on month.

The new order index stood at 51.8 percent, up 0.7 percentage point from a month ago. In breakdown, the new order index for the service sector increased to 51.2 percent, and that for the construction sector rose to 55.1 percent.

NBS data showed that the country's manufacturing purchasing managers' index (PMI) came in at 51.8, up from 51.6 in October.

Sub-indices for production and new orders came in at 54.3 and 53.6, respectively, up from 53.4 and 52.9 last month, indicating accelerated growth in both supply and demand. Enditem