China economy advanced in January and February, but mixed data underscores uneven nature of recovery
- Retail sales grew by 33.8 per cent in the combined figures for January and February, while industrial production grew by 35.1 per cent from a year earlier
- Last week, Premier Li Keqiang confirmed China had set an economic growth target of ‘above 6 per cent’ for 2021 after the economy grew by 2.3 per cent last year
China’s economy continued to advance, combined figures for January and February released on Monday showed, although the numbers are difficult to interpret due to the weak comparison base from a coronavirus-hit 2020.
Both retail sales and industrial production data were stronger than expected, suggesting that the economy continued to gain momentum in the first two months of 2021. However, fixed asset investment growth was lower than expected, while the surveyed unemployment rate rose during the first two months of the year, underscoring the uneven nature of the economic recovery.
The surge in percentage terms, though, was due in large part to the low comparison base from the same period last year when the coronavirus tore through the world’s second-largest economy.
In January and February this year, industrial production grew by 35.1 per cent from a year earlier, above analysts’ forecasts of 31.6 per cent and up from a growth of 7.3 per cent in December. Industrial production is a measure of manufacturing, mining and utilities activity.