Chinese economy displays strong resilience in April, marked by 6.1% rise in industrial output, many new growth drivers

Chinese economy withstood pressure and maintained growth momentum in April, as the resilience is bolstered by the government's latest package of stimulus policies, with industrial output growing steadily, employment being kept stable, and new growth drivers continuously emerging, official data showed on Monday.

According to latest data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), the total value added of the industrial enterprises above the designated size grew by 6.1 percent year-on-year in April, beating analysts' expectations of 5.5-percent growth.

In a breakdown, the output of 3D printing devices, industrial robots and new energy vehicles grew by 60.7 percent, 51.5 percent and 38.9 percent, respectively, the NBS said.

In the month, the total retail sales of consumer goods reached 3.72 trillion yuan ($515.29 billion), up 5.1 percent year-on-year, or rising by 0.24 percent points month by month. In the first four months, the total retail sales of consumer goods reached 16.18 trillion yuan, up 4.7 percent year-on-year, the NBS data showed.

In the first four months, fixed assets investment totaled 14.7 trillion yuan, up by 4.0 percent year-on-year. The investment in fixed assets was up by 8.0 percent with the investment in real estate being deducted.

In the first four months, the survey urban unemployment rate averaged 5.2 percent, unchanged compared to a year earlier. In April, the survey urban jobless rate was 5.1 percent, which is 0.1 percentage points lower than March of this year.

Chinese economy has weathered the pressure caused by external trade shocks in April, analysts said.

Boosted by the government's latest package of pro-growth stimulus policies, major economic indicators have witnessed a pattern of strong resilience, and the "national economy has maintained the new and positive development momentum," NBS spokesperson Fu Linghui said at a press conference on Monday.

However, "we should be aware that there are still many unstable and uncertain factors in the external environment, and the foundation for sustained economic recovery needs to be further shored up," Fu noted.

At the next stage, Fu said the authorities will move faster to create a new pattern of development, and better coordinate domestic economic management and endeavors in international trade cooperation.

"We must unswervingly manage the country's own affairs well, stay committed to expanding high-standard opening-up, focus on keeping labor employment, businesses, and market expectations stable, and make solid progress in high-quality development, so as to promote sustained economic recovery and growth," he said.