China’s economy grew at 6 percent in the third quarter of 2019 compared with a year earlier, its slowest pace in about 30 years, delivering another blow to global growth and underlining many of the challenges facing President Xi Jinping. The country’s trade war with the US, slowing income growth and cooling manufacturing investment took a toll on the world’s second-largest economy between July and September, according to the figures released bythe National Bureau of Statistics on Friday.
The gross domestic product data came in below analysts’ expectations of 6.1 per cent and revealed that China’s growth was running at a level comparable with the late 1980s. However, the overall size of the economy is now far larger and, by many accounts, cannot continue expanding at double-digit rates as it did until this decade. “I think 6 per cent is a stress test to the market,” said Zhou Hao, a senior economist at Commerzbank. “On the one hand, China seems to be willing to accept somewhat lower growth and is sending a signal that 6 per cent is not an untouchable bottom line.” On the other hand, Mr Zhou said, the market is growing wary of slowing growth and policymakers’ reluctance to use stronger stimulus measures.
Following the release of the GDP figures, the CSI 300 index of Shanghai and Shenzhen stocks was down 1.3 per cent. The renminbi was little changed.
China’s gloomy GDP numbers follow a warning from the IMF this week that global growth will fall to its lowest level since the international financial crisis. The world economy was set to grow 3 per cent in 2019, 0.3 percentage points below its equivalent forecast six months ago, the IMF said.