BEIJING–China’s production-led economic recovery continued in May, even as Beijing struggled to lift investment and consumption amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Value-added industrial production grew 4.4% in May, following a 3.9% expansion in April, the National Bureau of Statistics said Monday. May’s growth was slower than a median forecast of 5.0% growth by economists polled by The Wall Street Journal.
Retail and investment, however, kept dropping, albeit at a slower pace, official data showed.
Retail sales dropped 2.8% in May from a year earlier, narrowing from April’s 7.5% decline. Economists had forecast a 2.0% drop.
Fixed-asset investment outside rural households slipped 6.3% in the January-May period after a 10.3% plunge over the first four months. Economists had expected a 6% decrease for the first five months.
China’s national surveyed urban unemployment rate was 5.9% in May, a tick down from April’s 6.0%.