MNI BRIEF: China Nov Retail Sales, Output Fall To 6-Month Lows

China's consumption unexpectedly fell further in November amid renewed Covid-19 outbreaks, while industrial production and investment weakened more than expected due to Covid control measures, data released by the National Bureau of Statistics on Thursday showed.

Retail sales fell 5.9% y/y in November to hit a six-month low, extending the 0.5% y/y decline seen in October and missing the median forecast for a 3.6% y/y fall. Industrial production rose 2.2% y/y in November from October's 5% y/y, missing the consensus forecast for a 3.8% y/y rise and also hitting a six-month low. The surveyed urban unemployment rate stood at 5.7% in November, up 0.2% from the previous month.

Fixed-asset investment edged down to 5.3% y/y in the first eleven months, compared to the 5.8% gain in the Jan-Oct period. This underperformed the median forecast for a 5.7% rise. Property investment fell 9.8% y/y to hit the lowest level since February 2020, sliding further from the previous 8.8% fall. Infrastructure investment accelerated by 0.2 pp to 8.9%, while manufacturing investment decelerated by 0.4 pp to 9.3%.