Beijing: China’s economic slowdown deepened in August with a raft of key indicators missing expectations. Retail sales last month rose 3.4 percent from a year earlier, data from the National Bureau of Statistics showed Monday, missing analysts’ estimates for 3.9 percent growth and slowing from July’s 3.7 percent growth.
According to Emirates News Agency, industrial output growth slowed to 5.2 percent in August, compared to the 5.7 percent jump in July, marking its weakest level since August 2024. This downturn highlights the challenges faced by the world’s second-largest economy as it grapples with both domestic and global economic pressures.
Fixed-asset investment, reported on a year-to-date basis, expanded just 0.5 percent, a sharp slowdown from the 1.6 percent expansion in the January to July period, and undershooting economists’ forecasts for 1.4 percent growth. This continued decline in key economic indicators underscores the urgency for China to implement measures to stabilize and stimulate its economy.