China GDP: economy grew by 4.8 per cent in first quarter despite ‘complicated, uncertain’ headwinds
- China’s economy grew by 4.8 per cent in the first quarter of 2022 compared with a year earlier, up from the 4 per cent growth seen in the fourth quarter of last year
- Retail sales fell by 3.5 per cent in March from a year earlier, while industrial production grew by 5 per cent last month
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China’s economy grew faster than expected in first quarter, despite “significant challenges”
China’s economy beat expectations and grew by 4.8 per cent in the first quarter of 2022 compared with a year earlier, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) announced on Monday.
“We must be aware that the domestic and international environment is becoming increasingly complicated and uncertain, and that economic development is facing significant difficulties and challenges,” said NBS spokesman Fu Linghui.
“With regard to the trend of the next stage, although there is some pressure in the short term on the economy … from the perspective of the whole year, China’s economy is expected to maintain a recovery trend of development.”
In other figures released by the NBS on Monday, industrial production, a gauge of activity in the manufacturing, mining and utilities sectors, grew by 5 per cent in March from a year earlier, down from 7.5 per cent growth in combined figures for January and February.
This was above the forecast in the Bloomberg survey of analysts, which had predicted 4 per cent growth in March.
Retail sales fell by 3.5 per cent in March, year on year, down from 6.8 per cent growth in combined figures for January and February.