CHINA’S manufacturing and investment strengthened during the first two months of the year, the National Bureau of Statistics said today.

The report said industrial output soared by a massive 7 per cent from a year earlier in January-February, better than analysts had forecast. 

Spending on factories and equipment, known as fixed-asset investments, rose by a healthy 4.2 per cent.

The strong performance followed moves by Chinese authorities to boost growth. 

The statistics bureau said retail sales climbed by a strong 5.5 per cent and the consumer price index was up 0.7 per cent in February after months of falling prices.

“Industrial production was a sizeable beat, supported by strong exports in the month, while fixed assets investments on the other hand, were likely supported by a state-driven push early this year,” said Louise Loo of Oxford Economics.

Beijing has set an economic growth target of about 5 per cent for 2024.

“We expect economic momentum to improve further in the near-term given the tailwind from policy stimulus,” said Zichun Huang, a China economist with Capital Economics.

The recovery of what many experts say is the world’s largest economy following the shocks of the pandemic has been slowed by a sluggish real estate sector.

Investments in the sector fell by 9 per cent in January-February compared to the same period a year earlier.

During the National People’s Congress meetings, China’s leaders pledged to refine property sector policies, including increasing financing to developers and building more affordable housing.

The Chinese government has also pledged action to deal with unemployment. According to the latest data the official urban unemployment rate stands at 5.2 per cent.