Nonferrous metals cruised higher for the most part on Friday morning, after China said its factory activity expanded in July for the fifth month in a row and at a faster pace. The official manufacturing purchasing managers' index (PMI)rose to 51.1 in July from June's 50.9, official data showed on Friday, marking the highest reading since March. Analysts had expected it to slow to 50.7. LME nonferrous metals closed lower across the board on Thursday as investor digested a record drop in US gross domestic product (GDP). Copper declined 0.3%, aluminium fell 0.2%, zinc shed 0.4%, nickel and tin shed 1%, and lead lost 0.5%. On the SHEF, those metals traded mostly lower in overnight trading. Copper declined 0.2%, lead and nickel fell 0.3% and tin slumped 1.3%, while aluminium advanced 0.1% and zinc rose 0.4%. The US economy saw the biggest quarterly plunge in history. GDP from April to June plunged 32.9% on an annualised basis, according to the Commerce Department’s first reading on the data released Thursday.