Chinese manufacturing gathered momentum last month, providing further evidence that an important engine of global growth is humming again after sputtering in the second quarter.
The strength of the official purchasing managers' index (PMI) bodes well for countries that are selling everything from copper to high-end machinery to what by some measures is now the world's second-largest economy.
The PMI rose to 53.8 in September from 51.7 in August, easily beating the median forecast of 52.0 in a Reuters poll of economists.
It is the 19th straight month that the official PMI has stood above the threshold of 50 that demarcates expansion from contraction.
The upbeat survey chimed with a companion poll for HSBC, released on Wednesday, which rose to a five-month high on the back of stronger gains in output and new business.
The PMI showed strength across the board. Output and new orders rose strongly, as did imports, while firms further ran down their stocks of finished goods.
That typically suggests that manufacturers will have to ramp up production to meet an increase in new business.
Reuters