PMI hits highest level in 8 months

Great economic resilience shown amid trade tensions, analysts say

The purchasing managers index, a gauge of manufacturing that reflects business activity, rose to an eight-month high in May, highlighting the resilience of the world's second-largest economy, analysts said.

The PMI rose to 51.9 in May, up from 51.4 in April, well above the 50-point mark that separates expansion from contraction. The index, released on Thursday by the National Bureau of Statistics, has remained in expansion territory for the 22nd straight month.