China's retail sales grew weakly in November, fueling concerns about consumption.

 

China's economy slowed sharply in November, with consumption, investment, and industrial output growing less than anticipated, as authorities struggled to manage supply, revive demand, and halt the decline in the property sector.

Retail sales rose by 1.3% last month compared to the same period a year ago, significantly lower than the 2.8% projected by Reuters and a deceleration from 2.9% in the prior month.

Industrial production increased by 4.8% in November year-on-year, falling short of the 5% forecast and marking the weakest growth since August 2024.

Fixed-asset investment, which includes real estate, contracted by 2.6% during the January-November period year-on-year, a steeper decline than the 2.3% contraction expected by economists.

This contraction worsened from 1.7% in the January-October period and represents the sharpest decline since the pandemic outbreak in 2020, according to Wind Information data dating back to 1992.

China's trade surplus surged to a record $1.1 trillion in November, breaking the previous full-year record high of $992.2 billion set in 2024 in just 11 months. This raised widespread concern about the country's reliance on foreign demand and the depreciation of the Yuan to maintain export competitiveness.