China's April economic data underwhelms, with retail sales growth slowing to lowest since 2022

SHENZHEN, CHINA - MAY 1: The Chinese national flag is seen in front of stacked shipping containers bearing MSC (Mediterranean Shipping Company), Maersk, and Hamburg Süd branding at Yantian Port on May 1, 2026, in Shenzhen, Guangdong Province, China. Cheng Xin | News | China's economy stumbled in April with consumption, industrial output and investment growth missing expectations as the fallout from the Iran war dampened momentum in the world's second-largest economy. Retail sales, a gauge of consumption, grew 0.2% last month from a year ago, sharply missing economists' forecast for a 2% rise and slowing from 1.7% in March, according to data released by the National Bureau of Statistics on Monday. That marked the weakest growth since December 2022. China's industrial output jumped 4.1% in April from a year earlier, decelerating from 5.7% growth in March , and undershooting expectations for a 5.9% rise in a Reuters poll. Urban fixed asset investment, including real estate and infrastructure, contracted 1.6% in the first four months this year from a year earlier, compared with expectations for 1.6% growth. In the January to March period, urban investment had expanded 1.7% year on year. The strong performance of exporters helped to mitigate the weaknesses in domestic demand, but not enough to fully offset it, said Zhiwei Zhang, president and chief economist at Pinpoint Asset Management. …