FX.co ★ China NBS General PMI Rises to 9-Month High

China’s NBS Composite PMI Output Index rose to 50.7 in September 2026, up from 49.5 in August, registering its highest level since December 2025. This reading signaled the first expansion in overall business activity since June, as manufacturing output picked up and the services sector grew for the first time in three months. Sentiment was supported by strong global demand for AI-related hardware, expectations of further policy easing from Beijing, and a rebound from disruptions caused by adverse weather in August. Even so, domestic and external headwinds remained, including subdued household and business demand at home, rising energy costs that eroded factory profit margins, and uneven momentum across the broader economy.