China's economic growth weakens amid construction slowdown
China’s economic growth sank in the latest quarter a a slowdown in construction and curbs on energy use weighed on its recovery from the coronavirus pandemic
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.China’s economic growth sank in the latest quarter a a slowdown in construction and curbs on energy use weighed on its recovery from the coronavirus pandemic.
The world’s second-largest economy grew by 4.9% over a year ago in the three months ending in September, down from the previous quarter’s 7.9%, government data showed Monday.
Factory production, retail sales and investment in construction and other fixed assets all weakened.
Construction an industry that supports millions of jobs, has slowed since regulators tightened control last year over borrowing by developers.
One of the biggest, Evergrande Group, is struggling to avoid defaulting on billions of dollars owed to bondholders. That has fueled fears about the health of other developers, though economists say the threat to global financial markets is small.
Manufacturing also was hampered in September by power cuts imposed by some major provinces to avoid exceeding official efficiency goals.
Private sector forecasters have cut their growth outlook this for China though they still expect about 8%, which would be among the world’s strongest.