China’s services business activity growth picked up in November, as a private-sector survey showed on Tuesday.

The Caixin/S&P Global services purchasing managers’ index (PMI), an economic indicator gauging China’s private sector services activity, rose to a three-month high of 51.5 in November from 50.4 in October. The 50-point index mark separates growth from contraction.

New orders rose considerably, indicating improved demand from both domestic and overseas markets.

Easing inflationary pressure also contributed to an expansion in services activity.

“Cost pressures moderated again in November, with average operating expenses rising at the weakest rate in nearly a year and a half since June 2022,” the survey read.

But employment across the manufacturing sector fell fractionally as some firms maintained a cautious approach to hiring, it added.

The positive findings came in contrast with an official survey last week, which showed that the country’s services sector contracted for the first time in 12 months, prompting analysts and economists to call for new stimulus.