China March non-manufacturing PMI at five-month high

China's official purchasing managers' index for non-manufacturing sectors jumped to a five-month high at 58.4 in March, the Xinhua news agency said on Saturday, citing official data. The index, compiled by the China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing, rebounded from 46.4 in February, when it fell below the boom-bust line of 50 for the first time since February 2009.
The recovery in the service sector, along with recent PMI surveys showing a robust China's vast manufacturing sector, pointed to accelerating economic growth in the first quarter that may well hit double digits. The PMI surveys for February were complicated by the timing of the Chinese New Year holiday, which effectively halted work for a full week last month.