He Chinese factory production growth slowed in October and it was still too early to speak of a change in trend in the crisis-hit real estate sector, although consumption recovered, keeping alive calls for Beijing to increase its recent stimulus injections to revitalize the economy.
This avalanche of data is likely keep the pressure on Chinese leaderswho are preparing for the return to the White House of Donald Trumpwho has promised increase tariffs on Chinese products y has appointed members of his cabinet critical of Chinain a worrying sign for the world’s second largest economy.
Industrial production in October grew 5.3% compared to the previous yearas data from the National Statistics Office showed this Friday, slowing down compared to September’s 5.4% pace and below expectations of a 5.6% increase according to a survey by Reuters.
However, Retail sales, an indicator of consumption, rose 4.8% in Octoberaccelerating the pace of September’s 3.2% and marking the fastest growth since February.
Retail growth was boosted by a week of holidays and the annual Singles’ Day shopping festival, which began on October 14, ten days earlier than last year.
Data provider Syntun estimated that sales on major e-commerce platforms rose 26.6% to 1.44 trillion yuan during the Singles’ Day event.
“The Chinese economy improved further at the start of the fourth quarter, thanks to stronger-than-expected consumer spending,” he said. Zichun HuangChina economist at Capital Economists.
“We believe that faster fiscal spending will support a continued cyclical rebound in activity in the coming months. But Trump’s victory casts a shadow over longer-term prospects”he added.
Fu Linghuia spokesperson for the statistical agency, told a news conference that recent policy measures appeared to be having a positive economic effect and that authorities would continue to step up support.
“The changes in economic operations in September and October have reinforced China’s confidence in achieving its economic growth target for 2024,” around 5%, he added.
However, some economists said that It was too early to determine whether the last tranche of aid in September was enough to underpin a solid recovery.
Data released this Friday show that Home sales by surface area in the January-October period fell 15.8% year-on-yearslower than the 17.1% drop from January to September.
(Reuters)
