China on Wednesday released a slew of official economic data that beat expectations, including the widely anticipated gross domestic product figure.
Beijing said its economy expanded by 6.4 percent year-on-year in the first quarter of 2019, topping the 6.3 percent that analysts polled by Reuters had expected. China’s economy grew by 6.4 percent year-on-year in the fourth quarter of last year, and 6.8 percent in the first quarter of 2018.
Workers check parts at a factory in Fujian province
The Asian economic giant also released other economic indicators:
- Industrial production jumped 8.5 percent year-on-year in March — surging past the 5.9 percent estimated by Reuters to register the fastest growth since July 2014.
- Retail sales for March grew by 8.7 percent year-on-year, beating Reuters’ projection of 8.4 percent.
- Fixed asset investment in the first quarter increased by 6.3 percent year-on-year, in line with expectations.