China on Monday said its economy grew 4.5% for the July-September quarter from a year ago, moving closer to meeting its official annual growth target as the year nears its end. The better-than-expected official data accelerated from the 4.3% year-on-year growth recorded in the April-June period, the slowest expansion in more than three years. For the whole year, Chinese leaders have set a growth target of 4.5%-5%, down from last year’s 5% expansion. Earlier this month, the International Monetary Fund trimmed its forecast for China’s 2026 economic growth to 4.5%, just meeting the lower end of Beijing’s goal.
China’s domestic demand has weakened, weighed on by a yearslong downturn in its property market that has squeezed household wealth and driven up savings. Still, with strong exports being one of the few bright spots, China is on track to surpass last year’s record $1.2 trillion trade surplus globally, after logging a 36% growth in exports last month and already a $938 billion surplus between January and September. For many of its trade partners, they fear their domestic industries and economies are facing growing threats from the surge of lower-cost Chinese manufactured imports.
