China factory activity picks up steam, surveys show

HONG KONG (AP) — China's factory activity picked up pace last month, surveys released Wednesday showed, adding to recent evidence that a key sector of the world's No. 2 economy is stabilizing.

Regulators are moving to tighten up lending controls and tamp down what they consider to be a dangerously quick rise in debt and surging housing costs.

The official survey is tilted more toward larger, state-run enterprises while the survey by financial magazine Caixin is focused on small and medium private companies.