Data released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showed that industrial production increased by 7.0% in the first two months of 2024 after rising by 6.8% in December. It was the fastest growth in almost two years. Economists had expected a 5% increase.
Meanwhile, retail sales increased by 5.5% per annum in the period from January to February. In December, sales rose by 7.4%. Consensus estimates suggested an increase of 5.2%. The eight-day Lunar New Year holiday in February saw a solid return of travel, which supported revenue of tourism and hospitality sectors.
NBS also said that in the first two months of 2024, investments in fixed assets increased by 4.2% per annum, while economists had forecast growth of 3.2%. For the whole of 2023, they increased by 3.0%. The report also showed that the unemployment rate among young people (aged 16-24), excluding college students, fell to 14.6% in January from 14.9% in December.
Overall, the latest data will be welcomed by policymakers who seek to support unsustainable economic growth and have set a growth target for 2024 of about 5%. But analysts warn that it will be more difficult to achieve such growth than last year. Moreover, the real estate sector remains weak and may continue to be the main obstacle to a solid economic recovery this year.