China industrial output at highest since June

BEIJING—Industrial production growth in China rose in November to its highest level since June, official data showed Saturday, a bright spot for the world’s second-largest economy as it struggles with slowing growth.

Output at factories, workshops and mines increased 6.2 percent last month from a year ago, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said, the first increase since August and a significant jump from October’s figure of 5.6 percent.

The figures, which came on robust production of automobiles, synthetic fibers and non-ferrous metals, were higher than a median forecast of a 5.7 percent increase in a survey of economists by Bloomberg News.

Retail sales also beat expectations, rising 11.2 percent to their highest level this year, the data showed, after last month’s national online shopping day generated more than $14 billion in sales.

Total online sales increased by 34.5 percent during the period from January to November, NBS said.

Fixed asset investment was up 10.2 percent in the period from January to November, the same pace as was reported in October, according to the statistics.

The figures come as the world worries about growth in China, a leading engine of global expansion.

Authorities are trying to transform the country’s growth model to a slower but more sustainable one driven by consumption rather than infrastructure investment, but the transition to the “new normal” is proving bumpy.

Overcapacity in manufacturing, a slowdown in the country’s property market and mounting local government debt are among the factors that have weighed on growth.

Saturday’s announcement followed good news for car sales and bank lending this week that suggested the economy may be experiencing a mild recovery on government stimulus measures, including six interest rate cuts since November last year and a cut in vehicle purchase taxes.

The country’s imports tumbled 8.7 percent to $143.1 billion in November, narrowing significantly from an 18.8 percent slump in October, and the consumer price index (CPI) rose 1.5 percent last month from a year ago, edging up from October’s 1.3 percent, data released earlier this week showed.

Chinese growth hit a 24-year low in 2014 and has slowed further this year, raising concerns on global markets. The country logged its worst economic performance since the global financial crisis in the third quarter, with growth of just 6.9 percent.

President Xi Jinping has said that the country should maintain a growth rate of at least 6.5 percent if it hopes to achieve its goal of building a “moderately prosperous society” by 2020, an ambition that includes doubling national per capita income from 2010 levels.