Beijing: The composite purchasing managers' index (PMI) of China stood at 54.4 in April, which continued to maintain expansion, indicating that enterprise production and business activities continue to recover and develop, Global Times reported, quoting the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

According to Global Times, the non-manufacturing business activity index was 56 in April. Although the figure dropped 1.8 percentage points from March, it was still above the 50-point mark that separates expansion and contraction, indicating that the non-manufacturing sector maintained high-level growth.

As per NBS, the demand of face-to-face service industries saw a spike, driven by holiday consumption from the Spring Festival holidays in January, the Qingming Festival holidays in early April and the ongoing May Day holidays.

The NBS stated on Sunday that the transportation sector has remained active due to tourism demand.

The index of new orders in the air transport industry rose for three consecutive months and remained above 70 percent, according to reports.

The index for new orders in the rail transportation sector remained above 63 percent for the second consecutive month, the NBS stated.

The catering, accommodation and recreation-related activities that directly reflect holiday consumption demand showed sustained momentum in both supply and demand, Global Times reported.

The business activity index and the new order index of the above industries all increased compared with March, and both remained at a high level of more than 55 percent, according to the Chinese state-run newspaper.