TAIPEI, May 2 (Xinhua) -- Taiwan's manufacturing activity returned to growth in April, after contracting for five consecutive months, indicated by the latest purchasing managers' index (PMI) reading by the Chung-Hua Institution for Economic Research (CIER) Thursday.

The PMI for April stood at 51.7, up 2.6 percentage points from the previous month. A PMI reading above 50 suggests expansion while below 50 contraction.

Based on data compiled from monthly replies to questionnaires sent to executives in about 300 representative manufacturing companies, the PMI measures new orders, inventory levels, production, supplier deliveries and employment.

All of the five sub-indexes stood above 50 in the April survey, according to CIER.

Among the six major manufacturing industries, the chemicals/biotech industries saw the fastest expansion in April, followed by the electronics/optoelectronics, electricity/machinery, food/textile, transportation and basic raw materials, CIER said.

For the services sector, the non-manufacturing index (NMI) rose by 2.3 percentage points from the previous month to 55.6 in April, expanding for two months in a row, according to the CIER.

All of the four major sub-indexes in the NMI, measured by business activity/production, new orders, employment and suppliers' deliveries, posted readings above 50.