China's rail freight up 11.2% in Oct

BEIJING - China's national rail freight volume, an indicator of economic activity, continued to grow in October.

Rail freight volume for October rose 11.2 percent year-on-year to 310 billion tons, compared with a 7 percent rise in September, according to the Ministry of Transport website.

In the first ten months of this year, railways carried 2.71 billion tons of cargo, down 3.3 percent year-on-year.

The manufacturing sector posted its best performance in more than two years, another sign that the economy is stabilizing.

The manufacturing purchasing managers' index (PMI) rose to 51.2 in October from 50.4 in September, well above market expectations and the highest level since July 2014, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

The manufacturing PMI has been above the 50-point mark, which demarcates expansion from contraction, for a third month.

Industrial output expanded 6 percent in the first ten months of 2016, thanks largely to strong performance in the high-tech and equipment manufacturing sectors.