BEIJING (Reuters) – China’s economic activity picked up in the first two months of 2023 as consumption and infrastructure investment led to a recovery from pandemic-related disruptions, despite challenges by the weakness of global demand and the persistent slowdown in the real estate sector.

China gradually eased its restrictive COVID-19 measures in late 2022, reinvigorating an economy that had seen one of its lowest growth rates in nearly half a century.

Industrial production in China rose 2.4% year on year in the January-February period, official data showed on Wednesday, compared with a 1.3% increase in December. Economists polled by Reuters had expected a slightly higher rise of 2.6%.

Retail sales rose 3.5% over the same period, after falling 1.8% in December. The consensus stood at 3.5%.

“We expect China’s growth momentum to improve further in the coming months, driven primarily by the recovery in consumption and continued accommodative macroeconomic policy,” Goldman Sachs analysts said in a statement. note.

Infrastructure investment climbed 9.0% in the first two months of 2023 compared to 2022, driven by government spending to support the economy. However, real estate investments fell a further 5.7%, reflecting the caution of property buyers and developers.

In order to support growth, the Chinese central bank on Wednesday increased its liquidity injections for the fourth consecutive month, renewing medium-term loans that were coming due. The key interest rate, however, remained unchanged.

China has set itself a modest annual growth target of around 5% this year, after largely missing its forecast for 2022.

(Report Kevin Yao, Qiaoyi Li and Ellen Zhang; Camille Raynaud and Victor Goury-Laffont, edited by Blandine Hénault)

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