China's economies slowing down?

The latest data from China has indicated that the country's economy is continuing to slow, raising the prospect of monetary policy easing.

In April, factory output, retail sales and consumer price growth all slowed, a sign that global and domestic demand was falling.

The data comes just a day after China reported that its export and import growth had slowed during the month.

Analysts said fresh measures were needed to sustain growth.

Factory output rose by 9.3% in April from a year earlier, down from 11.9% growth in March.

Retail sales also grew by a less-than-expected 14.1% from a year earlier, compared with an annual growth of 15.2% in the previous month.

Meanwhile, consumer price growth slowed to 3.4% during the month, from a year earlier, down from 3.6% in March.

"The bottom line here is that the focus very much now is on growth," Song Seng Wun of CIMB Research told the BBC.

"The slower pace of rise in consumer prices gives enough room to the central bank to step in and ease its policies further if it wants to."


China has been trying to boost domestic demand in an attempt to offset the fall in global demand for its exports.

The rate of inflation hit a three-year high in July last year, with prices rising at an annual rate of 6.5%.

However, price growth has been moderating ever since, led by a drop in food prices month-on-month, especially that of pork, a staple of the Chinese diet.

Pork prices rose by 5.2% in April from a year earlier, compared with 11.3% annual growth seen in March.

At the same time, the recent drop in oil prices has also helped to keep consumer price growth in check.