In China factory activity unexpectedly expanded in February as new orders improved, pointing to some resilience in the world’s second-largest economy even as downward pressure builds and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine heightens global uncertainty.

The official manufacturing Purchasing Manager’s Index (PMI) registered 50.2 in February, remaining above the 50-point mark, which separates growth from contraction, and picking up a touch from 50.1 in January, data from the National Bureau of Statistics (BS) showed on Tuesday.

It was thought the PMI would to ease to 49.9.