China’s GDP grows 5.3% in the first quarter of 2024, exceeding market expectations

China’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) grew 5.3% in the first quarter of 2024, exceeding market expectations.

This robust growth, driven by the solid performance of exports and high-tech industrial production, lays a solid foundation for the Chinese economy to achieve its annual growth target of around 5%, analysts said.

The data, released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) on Tuesday, showed growth significantly higher than the average forecast of 4.6% made by economists polled by Reuters.

This performance reflects the resilience of the Chinese economy and highlights the attractiveness of its vast consumer and industrial goods market, contradicting the narrative of some Western media about a supposed decline in the Chinese economy.

Retail sales rose 4.7 percent year on year to reach 12.03 trillion yuan ($1.66 trillion) in the first quarter, while industrial value added grew 6.1 percent and investment in fixed assets rose 4 .5% to 10 trillion yuan, according to official data.

The unemployment rate registered 5.2% in March, a slight drop compared to the previous month, according to official data.

“In the next stage, China will actively cultivate and develop new quality productive forces and strengthen the implementation of the government’s macro policies, continuing to effectively pursue high-quality economic growth and adequately increase economic output,” said Sheng Laiyun, vice- head of the DNE, during the press conference of the State Council Information Office.

Analysts note that although industrial production and consumption growth slowed in March, the solid overall performance of the Chinese economy in the quarter is evident, exceeding market expectations.

“Quarter after quarter, the economy grew 1.6% in the first quarter, faster than the 1.4% growth expected by market analysts,” Tian Yun, a Beijing-based economist, told the Global Times.

With information from the Global Times