China's Industrial Production Growth Slows, Retail Sales See Revitalization

Foreks - China's industrial production growth slowed in October, and while retail sales appeared to be slightly more vibrant, there were few signs that the demand issues in the real estate sector were easing. According to data released by the National Bureau of Statistics, industrial production in October rose by 3% compared to the previous year, a slowdown from September's 5.4% growth rate. Economists had expected a 5.6% increase in industrial production.

However, retail sales, an indicator of consumption, increased by 4.8% in October, surpassing the 3.2% growth seen in September. This marked the fastest growth in retail sales since February. The growth in retail sales was supported by a week-long holiday and the annual Singles' Day shopping festival, which started ten days earlier than last year on October 14. Data provider Syntun estimated that sales on major e-commerce platforms surged by 26.6% during the Singles' Day event, reaching 1.44 trillion yuan.

Investment in fixed assets increased by 3.4%, compared to an expectation of a 3.5% increase, in the first ten months of 2024. In the January-September period, it had grown by 3.4%.

Conversely, real estate investment declined by 10.3% year-on-year from January to October, deepening the 10.1% decrease seen in the first nine months of the year. In terms of area, real estate sales fell by 15.8% compared to the previous year in the January-October period, a slower decline than the 17.1% drop recorded between January and September.