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Stocks in the United States were higher on Wednesday, a day after markets around the world tumbled in the wake of weak manufacturing data in China.

In late morning trading, the benchmark Standard & Poor’s 500-stock index was up about 0.7 percent and the Dow Jones industrial average was up 0.8 percent.

The steep declines in the last two weeks have been tied to broader concerns about global economic growth. Some analysts said it was too early to tell whether Wednesday’s increases were a sign that stocks were close to bottoming out.

“We are getting a little bit of a letup today, but the headache may continue,” said Bruce McCain, chief investment strategist at KeyBank.

Investors are expected to keep watching for signs of weakness in China — although they will have a two-day break with markets there closed the rest of the week.

The Shanghai composite index closed down 0.2 percent on Wednesday, leaving it almost 40 percent lower than its recent peak. A late rally was driven by huge trading volume, suggesting government intervention in the market.

The weakness in Chinese shares was by no means the worst the country has seen over the last month, but coming ahead of closely stage-managed celebration in China to commemorate the end of World War II, it has underscored concerns about Beijing’s ability to manage economic growth.

In particular, international investors and economists worry that heavy-handed state intervention to prop up sagging stocks, and poor communication before a currency devaluation in August, signal uncharacteristic sloppiness from the technocrats who have guided China’s steady rise in gross domestic product over the last three decades.

“There are growing doubts about China’s leadership and the direction of the economy,” Alex Wolf, an emerging markets economist at Standard Life Investments, wrote in a note. “Indeed, some have even begun to question whether the Chinese government has ‘lost control’ of the economy.”

In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng closed 1.2 percent lower, while the Nikkei 225 in Japan closed 0.4 percent lower.

The United States benchmark for crude oil, West Texas intermediate, rose 0.8 percent on Wednesday. On Tuesday, its price fell nearly 8 percent, after three days of increases. Brent crude oil from the North Sea fell 1.1 percent on Wednesday.

Continue reading the main story Oil Prices: What’s Behind the Plunge? Simple Economics The oil industry, with its history of booms and busts, is in a new downturn.

The yield on the 10-year Treasury note moved up slightly on Wednesday, to 2.18 percent. Investors have often piled into United States government bonds as a safe-haven investment during periods of instability in the markets. But the 10-year note has not rallied sharply during the latest sell-off in the stock market.

Some analysts said this could indicate that most investors were not expecting a severe downturn.

“Bonds would be showing a lot more activity if investors felt this was going to lead to a recession or a bear market,” Mr. McCain said.

Major European indexes moved higher. Both the FTSE 100-stock index in London and the Dax in Frankfurt were up around 0.4 percent

Despite the worries about China, most analysts say they believe that the country will be able to avoid a sharp economic slowdown. But to restore confidence in its stock markets, they say, continued loosening of monetary policy by the Chinese central bank, initiatives like share buybacks from companies and broader market-oriented changes will be necessary.

The Chinese government’s continued direct intervention in the market, on the other hand, will only strengthen concerns, according to an analyst’s note from Citibank.

“Significant reduction of administrative intervention into domestic equities is more important to regain global investors’ confidence,” the note said.

Even so, China’s largest brokerage firms, under the direction of regulators, have vowed to pour in additional investments to support the equity markets, according to a number of recent filings with the stock exchanges. For example, in a note on Tuesday, Haitong Securities said it would invest an additional 4.5 billion renminbi, or roughly $700 million, on top of the 15 billion renminbi it had pledged to the stock market bailout fund.

The move was made “to maintain the long-term stability of the securities market, promote the positive role of a securities company and fulfill its corporate social responsibility,” Haitong said in its filing on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.

Though analysts say such moves will eventually help support the market, many also worry that the measures indicate that the broader Chinese economy could be in worse shape than official data suggests.

A sell-off in the global market started soon after China devalued its currency on Aug. 11. Though analysts have said the move could help make China’s exports more attractive, the move is likely to slow Chinese imports, hurting the regional economy. On Tuesday, South Korea, for example, reported export figures well below market expectations.

This week’s market tumble was prompted by the appearance of other weaknesses, in the form of a broad slowdown in measures of manufacturing in both China and the United States. Still, there are some positive signs of a slow transition from a Chinese economy based on infrastructure investment to one led by consumer spending.

Recent indicators from China’s service and property sectors have shown strength, according to Mr. Wolf of Standard Life. But he said the economic transition in China would not occur without some pain.

“The government has injected a level of economic uncertainty unforeseen in China, and as skepticism over official statistics continues to grow, financial volatility will likely result,” he wrote, adding that nonetheless, it is “too early to claim the Chinese economy is in for a hard landing.”

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