BEIJING — China's non-manufacturing activities saw an uptick in February, indicating an accelerated pace of recovery, official data showed on March 1.

The purchasing managers' index (PMI) for China's non-manufacturing sector came in at 51.6 in February, up from 51.1 in January, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said.

A reading above 50 indicates expansion, while a reading below it reflects contraction.

The non-manufacturing sector overall picked up its recovery pace last month, according to NBS senior statistician Zhao Qinghe.

Due to an uptick in the business climate of the services sector, the sub-index for business activities in the sector edged up 0.2 percentage points to 50.5 in February, but still lower than the usual level of Spring Festival holiday months in previous years, Zhao said.

Fueled by the Spring Festival consumption boom, companies in railway transport, air transport, postal-express delivery, culture, sports and entertainment saw their business increase on a month-on-month basis, with their activity sub-indexes all standing above 57, a relatively high level.

But "industries including retail, ecological protection and resident services, all greatly affected by the COVID-19 resurgence, saw weaker business activities last month," Zhao noted.

The sub-index for business expectations in the services sector rose 2.9 percentage points from January to 59.6 in February, "signaling an upbeat sentiment of services firms lifted by the gradual market recovery after the Spring Festival and policies to buttress industries in difficulties," he added.

The overall business expectation of the construction sector strengthened. The sub-index for business activities in the sector stood at 57.6 in February, surging 2.2 percentage points from the previous month.

The sub-index for business activity expectations in the construction sector stood at 66 in February, falling within the high expansion range for the second month in a row.

"This mirrored the improved expectations for the sector's development as efforts to keep investment stable advance and some major infrastructure projects are brought forward," Zhao said.

March 1's data also showed that the PMI for China's manufacturing sector came in at 50.2 in February, up from 50.1 in January.