Growth in China's factories slowed slightly in December with the official Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) dipping to 51.0, but the figure confirmed views that the world's second-largest economy showed resilience at the end of the year.
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Economists polled by Reuters had expected the official PMI, published by the National Bureau of Statistics, to ease to 51.2 from November's 51.4.
Most analysts believe the world's second-largest economy decelerated in the fourth quarter, hampered by slower credit growth, unsteady global demand for its exports and as companies slowed their rebuilding of inventories.
(Read more: Four big challenges for Asia in 2014: HSBC)
The 50-point mark in the PMI is the threshold separating an expansion in activity from a contraction.
