China consumption slows as retail sales and investment data disappoint

BEIJING
—
China
reported
data
Friday
that
pointed
to
slower
growth
on
the
consumer
side
while
industrial
activity
remained
robust.

Retail
sales
rose
by
2.3%
in
April
from
a
year
ago,
the
National
Bureau
of
Statistics
said.
That
was
less
than
the
3.8%
increase
forecast
by
a
Reuters
poll,
and
slower
than
the
3.1%
pace
reported
in
March.

Industrial
production
rose
by
6.7%
in
April
from
a
year
ago,
beating
expectations
for
5.5%
growth.
That
was
also
a
marked
pickup
from
4.5%
in
March.

But
fixed
asset
investment
rose
by
4.2%
for
the
first
four
months
of
the
year,
lower
than
the
4.6%
expected
increase.

Real
estate
investment
steepened
its
pace
of
decline, and
was
down 9.8%
year-on-year
for
the
first
four
months
of
2024.

Infrastructure
and
manufacturing
investment
during
that
time
both
slowed
their
pace
slightly
from
the
level
reported
as
of
March.

The
urban
unemployment
rate
in
April
was
5%.
The
bureau
has
previously
said
it
would
publish
the
breakdown
by
age
in
the
days
following
the
overall
data
release.

Retail
sales
grew
by
6.8%
year-on-year
during
a
recent
holiday
period
from
April
29
to
May
3,
according
to
China’s
Ministry
of
Commerce.

The
ministry
said
retail
sales
of
home
appliances
rose
by
7.9%
during
that
time,
while
that
of
automobiles
climbed
by
4.8%,
boosted
by
nationwide
trade-in
incentives.

“Major
indicators
of
industry,
exports,
employment
and
prices
improved
overall,
with
new
driving
forces
maintain[ing]
rapid
growth,”
the
bureau
said.

The
statistics
bureau
said
in
a
statement
that
the
April
figures
were
affected
by
the
May
1
Labor
Day
holiday
and
last
year’s
high
base. 

Statistics
bureau
spokeswoman
Liu
Aihua
pointed
out
that
last
year,
the
multi-day
May
1
Labor
Day
holiday
had
included
two
days
in
April.
This
year,
the
holiday
didn’t
begin
until
May
1.

She
said
the
real
estate
sector
remains
in
a
period
of
adjustment.

China
was
also
scheduled
Friday
to
kick
off
a
six-month
program
for

issuing
decades-long
bonds
to
fund
strategic
projects.
Oxford
Economics
expects
the
bulk
of
any
economic
impact
won’t
be
felt
until
the
first
half
of
next
year.

Liu
noted
the
issuance
of
ultra-long
bonds
could
also
help
boost
market
confidence.

Other
data
released
for
April
have
pointed
to
a
mixed
picture
for
growth.

Exports
grew
year-on-year
in
April,
up
by
1.5%
and
in
line
with
expectations,
while
imports
grew
far
more
than
expected,
up
by
8.4%.

In
another
indication
of
stabilizing
domestic
demand,

consumer
prices
ticked
up
last
month.

But
a
measure
of
prices
at
the
factory
level
continued
to
decline.

New
loan
data
for
April
slumped
to
levels
not
seen
in
at
least
two
decades,
due
largely
to
changes
in
data
measurement
but
also
reflecting
sluggish
demand
from
businesses
and
households
in
borrowing
for
the
future.

A
prolonged
slump
in
the
real
estate
sector
has
yet
to
show
signs
of
significant
turnaround,
with

many
pre-sold
apartments
still
under
construction.
More
cities
have
eased
housing
purchase
restrictions
in
the
last
few
weeks
in
a
bid
to
bolster
sales.

Officials
from
the
housing
ministry,
central
bank
and
financial
regulator
are
scheduled
Friday
afternoon
to
hold
a
press
conference
about
policies
to
support
the
delivery
of
homes.

Dan
Wang,
chief
economist
at
Hang
Seng
Bank
(China),
said
in
an
interview
late
last
month
she
expected
China’s
property
market
to
stabilize
by
the
end
of
next
year.

“It
actually
looks
to
me
the
policy
succeeded,
in
a
very
brutal
way
because
it’s
happening
too
fast,
because
it’s
essentially
stopped
speculation,”
she
said.

While
the
real
estate
slump
has
weighed
in
particular
on
middle-class
wealth,
she
pointed
out
the
economy
overall
has
held
up.

“Data
quality
aside,
it
seems
like
the
economy
is
able
to
compensate
for
a
big
loss
in
the
housing
market
by
industrial
investment
and
manufacturing,”
Wang
said.
“It
has
showed
some
strength
in
the
way
the
Chinese
economy
is
organized
and
how
its
industrial
policy
has
been
done.”

China’s
official

GDP
grew
by
5.3%
in
the
first
quarter
versus
a
year
ago,
better
than
expectations
for
a
4.6%
increase.
The
country
has
set
a
target
of
around
5%
GDP
growth
for
2024.

The
EU
Chamber
of
Commerce
in
China
told
reporters
last
week
that

recent
economic
pressures
appear
cyclical,
and
that
it’s
more
important
for
foreign
businesses
to
see
an
increase
in
domestic
demand
rather
than
industrial
investment.

Retail
sales
grew
by
6.8%
year-on-year
during
a
recent
holiday
period
from
April
29
to
May
3,
according
to
China’s
Ministry
of
Commerce.

The
ministry
said
retail
sales
of
home
appliances
rose
by
7.9%
during
that
time,
while
that
of
automobiles
climbed
by
4.8%,
boosted
by

nationwide

trade-in
incentives.

This
is
breaking
news.
Please
check
back
for
updates.