BEIJING — Factory activity in China shrank for the first time in three months in May, data showed on Friday, a setback for Beijing as the sector is seen as a key driver of a fragile economic recovery owing to sluggish consumer spending.

The manufacturing purchasing manager's index (PMI) — a key measure of factory output — dipped to 49.5 last month, from April's 50.4, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

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