The non-manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) rose to 56.2 in January from 56.1 in December, the Beijing-based National Bureau of Statistics and China Federation of Logistics & Purchasing said in a statement yesterday. A reading above 50 indicates expansion.
The Shanghai Composite Index last week posted the best weekly gain since October 2011 on optimism that Communist Party leader Xi Jinping can sustain the nation's expansion and control the risk that inflation will surge in the second half.
Strength in services may assist a shift to a consumption-driven economy as the government targets more sustainable growth and factory output contributes to record pollution.
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