China’s economic growth target in reach as stimulus buoys consumption

China’s consumption posted strong growth in October on the back of Beijing’s stimulus measures, increasing hope the world’s second-largest economy can accomplish its annual economic growth target.

Retail sales, a key indicator of consumption, increased by 4.8 per cent year on year last month, compared with the 3.2 per cent growth in September, marking the highest level since February, according to data released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) on Friday.

The reading beat expectations of 3.9 per cent growth projected by economists polled by Chinese financial data provider Wind.

China’s overall fixed assets investment, including major items such as infrastructure construction, manufacturing and property spending, rose by 3.4 per cent in the first 10 months of the year, unchanged from January to September.

“The national economy showed stable growth trend with major indicators recovering notably and positive factors accumulated,” said NBS spokesman Fu Linghui.

“However, we should be aware that the external environment is increasingly complicated and severe, demand is still weak at home, and the foundation for continuous economic recovery needs to be strengthened.”