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China’s economy posts slower growth in Q1

China’s economy posts slower growth in Q1

Mubasher: China's economy expanded in in the first quarter of this year at a slower pace, in comparison with the same quarter last year, but it came above forecasts, according to official data released on Wednesday.

China’s gross domestic product (GDP) came in at 6.4% in the three months ended last March, below a 6.8% in the same quarter last year, and a little slower than a year-on-year growth figure of 6.4% in the final three months of last year the widely anticipated data from National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said.

This came higher than an expected 6.3% growth figure, according to economists polled by Reuters.

On a side note, Chinese industrial production climbed 8.5% year-on-year during last March, with the expansion rate recording the fastest momentum since July 2014. This came surprisingly higher than an estimated 5.9% by the news agency.

In addition, retail sales in the Asian economic giant grew by 8.7% on year in March, compared with Reuters estimate of an 8.4%.

Fixed asset investment rose 6.3% in the first quarter, from a year earlier, matching expectations.

Analysts ascribed such better-than-expected figures to measures undertaken by Beijing to boost economic growth.

For instance, UBS Global Wealth Management’s chief China economist Yifan Hu believes “that policy impact is really taking effect now,” according to CNBC. Hu predicts that the Chinese government would take further supportive measures as trade anxieties persisted.

In the meantime, China and the US, the world’s biggest two economies, are in negotiations, after delaying their tariff actions.

By 7:42 am GMT, the Chinese yuan (CNY) rose 0.41% against the US dollar to CNY 6.6850.