By Ryan Browne, CNBC–

U.S. stock futures rallied early on Monday following strong manufacturing data out of China.

At around 5:50 a.m. ET, Dow futures indicated a higher open of nearly 200 points, while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq indexes were also in positive territory.

Traders turned focus to the latest economic figures from China. A private survey showed the country’s manufacturing activity expanded unexpectedly in March, at its fastest pace in eight months.

The figures gave some much-needed relief to investors unnerved of late by fears of a global economic downturn. Early last week, equities came under pressure as bond markets indicated an impending U.S. recession.

The yield on the 10-year Treasury note recently dipped below that of the 3-month bill, in what’s known as a yield curve inversion. A yield curve inversion is seen as a trusted predictor of a recession.

In other news boosting markets, the U.S. and China recently concluded their latest round of trade talks. U.S. officials last week said China had made proposals on a number of issues — including forced technology transfers — that go further than previous commitments.

The two superpowers are set to resume talks in Washington this week. Both countries have targeted billions of dollars’ worth of each other’s goods with tariffs in their protracted trade dispute.

Monday is a busy day on the data front, with U.S. retail sales, manufacturing numbers, construction spending and business inventories due to be released.