China's economy grows 4.5 per cent in the third quarter

20 October 2026

China's National Bureau of Statistics reported on 19 October 2026 that gross domestic product grew 4.5 per cent from a year earlier in the July to September quarter, up from 4.3 per cent in the April to June quarter. Growth over the previous quarter was 1.2 per cent, against 0.9 per cent in April to June. For the first nine months of 2026 growth was 4.6 per cent, inside the government's annual target range of 4.5 to 5 per cent. Industrial output rose 5.5 per cent in September from 5.2 per cent in August, while retail sales rose 1.1 per cent from 0.4 per cent. Fixed-asset investment for January to September was down 7.2 per cent, infrastructure investment down 4.2 per cent and property investment down 20.6 per cent. Zhiguo He, a finance professor at Stanford University's Graduate School of Business, said a managed slow slowdown is the best Beijing can hope for.