Mubasher: Chinese industrial output growth slowed down more than expected during October, against a backdrop of a faltering global and domestic demand, as the long-drawn trade conflict with the US pulled activity down.

China’s value-added industrial output, a major economic indicator, rose by 4.7%, compared with a year earlier, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said on Thursday.

This marked a slowdown from the annual rate of 5.8% in September, while it came bigger than a forecast growth pace of 5.4%.

Manufacturing production expanded slower at 4.6% last month, compared with 5.6%, as mining output growth pace dropped to 3.9%, from 8.1%, whereas utilities production accelerated to 6.6%.

In terms of industries, output growth lost momentum for chemicals, non-metal minerals, ferrous metals, transport equipment and communications, computer and electric hardware.

For the first ten months of this year, industrial production climbed by 5.6% on year.

Other data pointed to a notable slowdown in other sectors, with retail sales growth hovering close to a 16-year low, and fixed asset investment (FAI) posting the weakest level on record.

Retail sales grew at 7.2% year-on-year last month, missing forecasts of 7.9%.

Such disappointing figures would justify the case further for the Chinese authorities to launch a new stimulus for the world’s second leading economy as growth hit a three-decade low in the third quarter.