China’s retail sales strengthen at the start of the year, industrial output tops expectations

cnbc.com:

China's economy showed a modest pickup for the first two months of the year, according to data published Monday by the National Bureau of Statistics, as Beijing reiterated its plan to bolster domestic consumption.

Retail sales rose by 4.0% in the January-February period from a year ago, compared with the 3.7% year-on-year growth in December and in line with Reuters estimates.

Industrial production climbed 5.9% in the first two months of the year from a year ago, slower than the 6.2% growth in December, but faster than a 5.3% expansion forecast by analysts in a Reuters poll.

Fixed asset investment, reported on a year-to-date basis, rose by 4.1%, beating the 3.6% growth estimated by economists, a notable jump from the 3.2% increase last year.

The data comes shortly after Chinese policymakers unveiled a wide-ranging plan to stimulate domestic consumption, reiterating Beijing's pledges to bolster residents' income and household spending.

The notice, published Sunday, repeated Beijing's plan to stabilize the stock market, establish a childcare subsidy scheme as well as boosting tourism.

While the high-level document appears to lack concrete implementation details, it provides a glance into Beijing's stance toward addressing some deep-seated issues, such as the slowing income growth and insufficient social safety net, Lynn Song, chief China economist at ING, told CNBC via email.

«Directionally it is quite encouraging that policymakers are taking a sober look at these themes, and it should help the longer term transition to a consumption driven economy,» he added.

Chinese leadership took on a hefty task by keeping a growth target of «around 5%» this year, a target seen harder to reach given rising trade tensions with the U.S.