China Sept official services PMI falls to 8-month low

[BEIJING] Growth in China's services sector eased a shade in September to an eight-month low after new orders shrank for the first time in at least a year, an official survey showed on Friday, the latest sign of weakness in the world's second-largest economy.

The official non-manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) edged down to 54.0 in September from 54.4 in August, but still comfortably above the 50-point mark that separates growth on a monthly basis from a contraction.

The data was published by the National Bureau of Statistics. - Reuters