Developing | China’s economy mixed in October as fixed-asset investment declines further

China’s economic indicators posted mixed results in October as markets were gripped by uncertainty ahead of the late-month summit between the US and Chinese presidents.

National fixed-asset investment fell by 1.7 per cent, widening from the 0.5 per cent drop recorded in the first nine months and underperforming Wind’s forecast of a 0.71 per cent decrease.

Retail sales, a major gauge of consumer spending, grew by 2.9 per cent year on year in October, according to data released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) on Friday. The figure surpassed the 2.73 per cent forecast from financial data provider Wind and marked a slight drop from September’s 3 per cent increase.

Retail and catering sales during the eight-day “super golden week” holiday rose just 2.7 per cent year on year, markedly slower than the 4.5 per cent growth in 2024, official data showed.

An NBS official said the economy in October was “generally stable” though cautioned that external factors bring uncertainties and acknowledged persistent challenges in the economy.

“We should be aware that there are many unstable and uncertain factors in the external environment, domestic structural adjustments face significant pressure and stable economic development is confronted with multiple challenges,” said Fu Linghui, spokesperson for the bureau.