Tourists
enjoy
the
night
view
along
the
Jialing
River
on
February
15,
2023
in
Chongqing,
China.
Vcg
|
Visual
China
Group
|
Getty
Images
China’s
third-quarter
economic
growth
came
in
stronger
than
expected,
boosting
hopes
that
the
world’s
second-largest
economy
will
meet
Beijing’s
annual
target
this
year.
China
posted
4.9%
growth
in
the
July
to
September
quarter
from
a
year
earlier,
according
to
a
release
from
China’s
National
Bureau
of
Statistics
on
Wednesday.
That’s
stronger
than
economists
expectations
for
third-quarter
GDP
of
4.6%,
according
to
a
Reuters
poll.
This
follows
the
6.3%
print
for
the
April-June
quarter
and
4.5%
growth
for
the
January-March
quarter.
On
a
quarter-on-quarter
basis,
China’s
economy
grew
1.3%
in
the
third
quarter,
stronger
than
economists’
expectations
for
a
0.9%
growth.
GDP
in
the
second
quarter
rose
0.8%
compared
to
the
previous
quarter.
China
also
released
monthly
data
Wednesday,
reporting
4.5%
growth
in
industrial
production
and
5.5%
spike
in
retail
sales
in
September
from
a
year
earlier
—
both
trumping
market
expectations.
Unemployment
eased
to
5%
in
September
from
5.2%
a
month
earlier.
Along
with
monthly
data
released
last
week,
the
latest
release
further
underscored
what
China’s
top
leaders
labeled
as
a “tortuous”
post-Covid
economic
recovery.
China’s
consumer
prices
were
flat
in
September,
on
the
verge
of
deflation,
while
producer
price
index
saw
annual
declines
slow
for
a
third
month.
September
exports
declined
less
than
expected,
though
imports
fell
slightly
worse
than
expected.
Aggregate
financing
—
a
broad
measure
of
credit
extended
—
climbed
9%
in
September,
slightly
more
than
expected.
A
bigger
than
expected
decline
in
the
value
of
new
bank
loans
was
offset
by
robust
government
bond
issuance
and
shadow
banking
credit
expansion.
This
is
a
developing
story.
Please
check
back
for
further
updates.
