China’s August retail sales and industrial data fell short of expectations

The picture shows a shopping mall in Hangzhou, China on September 9, 2024.

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BEIJING – China’s retail sales, industrial production and urban investment growth all fell below expectations in August, data released by the National Bureau of Statistics showed on Saturday.

Retail sales rose 2.1% year-on-year in August, below the 2.5% growth expected by economists polled by Reuters. This was also lower than July’s 2.7% increase.

Industrial production rose 4.5% year-on-year in August, below Reuters’ forecast of 4.8% growth. It also marked a slowdown in growth from 5.1% in July.

Fixed asset investment grew by 3.4% from January to August, lower than the expected 3.5% growth rate.

The urban unemployment rate was 5.3% in August, up from 5.2% in July.

Among fixed asset investments in August, the growth rate of infrastructure and manufacturing slowed down from last year compared with July. As of August, full-year real estate investment fell by 10.2%, the same decline as in July.

“We should see that the adverse effects of changes in the external environment are increasing,” the bureau said in an English statement. “The sustained economic recovery still faces multiple difficulties and challenges.”

This weekend, Saturday is a working day in China and Monday is the day off. The country will celebrate the Mid-Autumn Festival, also known as the Mooncake Festival, from Sunday to Tuesday. The next and last important public holiday in China this year is early October.

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Growth in the world’s second-largest economy has slowed after a disappointing recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic. Policymakers have yet to announce large-scale stimulus measures while acknowledging that domestic demand is insufficient.

Other data released last week highlighted continued weakness in consumption.

Customs data showed that import volume increased by 0.5% year-on-year in August, lower than expected. Exports grew by 8.7%, exceeding expectations.

Beijing’s consumer price index in August was also lower than analysts’ expectations, rising 0.6% from the same period last year.