Economy gets uplifting news from indexes

Analysts: Strong reading suggests that economy is stabilizing and improving

China's services sector activity expanded for a third straight month in March, pointing to further recovery in business activity amid the optimized COVID-19 containment measures, a private survey showed on Thursday.

Analysts said the strong reading suggests that China's economy is stabilizing and improving, marking a good start for a robust 2023. Meanwhile, they warned that the economic recovery is not yet solid, saying more efforts should be made to boost domestic demand and step up macroeconomic policy support.

The Caixin China General Services Purchasing Managers' Index, which focuses more on small and medium-sized enterprises and exporters, rose to 57.8 in March from 55 in February, media group Caixin said in a report on Thursday.