MNI BRIEF: China Q1 GDP Stronger Than Expected At 5.3%

The Chinese economy grew by 5.3% y/y, or 1.6% q/q, in Q1, beating the 4.6% forecast and accelerating from 2023's 5.2% growth, data released by the National Bureau of Statistics on Tuesday showed.

Industrial production rose 4.5% y/y in March, decelerating from the 7.0% growth in the first two months and underperforming the expected 5.2%. Industrial output grew 6.1% in Q1.

Retail sales also slowed to 3.1% y/y in March from the previous 5.5% gain, missing the 5.6% forecast. Consumption rose 4.7% in Q1.

Fixed-asset investment registered a 4.5% y/y increase to hit the highest since April 2023, rising from the 4.2% growth over the Jan-Feb period and beating the 3.2% consensus. Property investment fell further by 9.5% following the previous 9% decrease. Infrastructure investment and manufacturing investment grew by 6.5% and 9.9%, higher than the previous 6.3% and 9.4%.

Advisors recently told MNI that China’s manufacturing investment is set to maintain strong growth thanks to policy stimulus. (See MNI EM: Stimulus Seen Boosting China Manufacturing, Overcapacity)