BEIJING -- China's manufacturing purchasing managers' index (PMI), a gauge of factory activity, edged down in October but stood above expansion territory thanks to the government's pro-growth measures.

The PMI for the manufacturing sector came in at 51.4 in October, slightly down from 51.5 in September, the National Bureau of Statistics said Saturday.

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

The October PMI, beating the market expectation of 51.3, marked the eighth consecutive month of expansion.

The sub-index for production stood at 53.9, remaining in expansion territory and down 0.1 points from September, while that for new orders stayed unchanged at 52.8, indicating a continued improvement in demand, according to NBS senior statistician Zhao Qinghe.

The new export order and import sub-indexes climbed to 51 and 50.8 in October, up 0.2 points and 0.4 points respectively from the previous month.

Saturday's data also showed the PMI for the country's non-manufacturing sector came in at 56.2 in October, up from 55.9 last month.