China outlook mixed, as exports rise: Analysts
11 Jun 2012
Analysts said official data over the weekend presented a mixed picture for China's prospects.
On the one hand, economic growth was clearly slowing, somewhat faster than Chinese officials had intended.
A survey by Caixin, a leading leading Chinese financial magazine, predicted 7.8 per cent GDP growth in the second quarter, as against 9.5 per cent in the same period last year.
Industrial production rose to 9.6 per cent in May, which was a three-year low, while electricity consumption, considered by Chinese leaders to be one of the most reliable gauges of economic activity, was up by just 3.7 per cent in April, as against 7 per cent growth in March.
Government indexes showed property prices were falling in over half of the country's top 70 cities.
Yesterday, a day following the first interest rate cut since the financial crisis, China cut its petrol prices by 5.5 per cent, another classic indicator that Beijing was worried about a slowdown.
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