BEIJING—China’s businesses and the broader economy came under increasing pressure in August as factory activity expanded at a slower pace while the services sector slumped into contraction, raising the likelihood of more near-term policy support to boost growth. The world’s second-biggest economy witnessed a recovery from a COVID-19 slump, but momentum has weakened recently due to domestic COVID-19 outbreaks, high raw material prices, slowing exports, tighter measures to tame hot property prices and a campaign to reduce carbon emissions. The official manufacturing Purchasing Manager’s Index (PMI) fell to 50.1 in August from 50.4 in July, data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showed on Tuesday, holding just above the 50-point mark that separates growth from contraction. Analysts polled by Reuters had expected it to slip to 50.2. “The worse-than-expected August PMIs add conviction to our view that the growth slowdown in H2 could be quite notable,” Nomura economists wrote …