20130118 1006 China Economic Data.

China Q4 GDP growth picks up to 7.9 pct yr/yr - RTRS
18-Jan-2013 10:03
BEIJING, Jan 18 (Reuters) - China's economy grew 7.9 percent in the fourth quarter from a year earlier with a bounce that snapped seven straight quarters of slowing expansion, official data showed on Friday.
The figures, announced by the National Bureau of Statistics, were slightly stronger than market expectations in the consensus Reuters poll of a 7.8 percent expansion. (Full Story)
The fourth quarter bounce from Q3's 7.4 percent - the weakest since the first quarter of 2009 when the global financial crisis raged - left full year growth at 7.8 percent, making 2012 the weakest year of economic expansion since 1999.
Other data released alongside GDP showed industrial output grew 10.3 percent in December from a year ago, versus expectations of 10.1 percent.
Retail sales in December rose 15.2 percent on a year ago versus an estimated 14.9 percent in a Reuters poll.
Annual fixed-asset investment growth was 20.6 percent in 2012, versus the 20.7 percent forecast in the Reuters poll. The government only publishes cumulative investment data.


Following is a breakdown of China's quarterly GDP growth rates:
(percent change from a year earlier):
    Q412  Q312  Q212  Q112  Q411  Q311  Q211  Q111  Q410  Q310


     7.9   7.4   7.6   8.1   8.9   9.1   9.5   9.7   9.8   9.6


Other key economic data released by the bureau
(percent change from a year earlier):
                      2012   Dec   F/C-Dec   Nov  
    Industrial output 10.0  10.3      10.1  10.1
    FAI               20.6   n/a      20.7  20.7
    Retail sales      14.3  15.2      14.9  14.9