China September retail sales and factory output hit six-month highs
China's September retail sales and industrial output both grew at their fastest annual pace in six months, beating or matching market forecasts. Consumption rose 1.1 per cent year on year, while factory output expanded 5.5 per cent, with fixed-asset investment contracting less than expected.
China's key economic data for September met or beat market expectations, with annual growth in industrial output and retail sales both reaching six-month highs, according to the National Bureau of Statistics.
Retail sales of consumer goods rose 1.1 per cent in September from a year earlier, accelerating 0.7 percentage points from August and exceeding market forecasts. For the first three quarters, consumption grew 1.1 per cent year on year.
Value-added industrial output above designated size increased 5.5 per cent in September from a year earlier, up 0.3 percentage points from August and in line with expectations. In the January-September period, industrial output rose 5.3 per cent.
Fixed-asset investment in the first nine months fell 7.2 per cent year on year, the same decline as in the first eight months and slightly smaller than the market forecast of 7.3 per cent. Excluding property development, fixed-asset investment dropped 4.2 per cent.
On a monthly basis, retail sales grew 0.35 per cent in September, industrial output rose 0.61 per cent, and investment increased 0.07 per cent, ending a six-month run of declines in investment.