China’s economy grew a record 18.3% in the first quarter of 2021 compared to the same quarter last year.
It’s the biggest jump in gross domestic product (GDP) since China started keeping quarterly records in 1992.
However, Friday’s figures are below expectations, with a Reuters poll of economists predicting 19% growth.
They are also heavily skewed, and less indicative of strong growth, as they are compared to last year’s huge economic contraction.
In the first quarter of 2020, China’s economy shrank 6.8% due to nationwide lockdowns at the peak of its Covid-19 outbreak.
Other key figures released by China’s statistics department also point to a continuing rebound, but are also unusually strong because they are compared against extremely weak numbers from last year.
“Trade performance and domestic industrial activities for the rest of year might not be able to maintain such strong momentum, due to lack of measures to stimulate domestic economy,” she said. The figures nevertheless suggest China has continued to gain economic momentum, after reporting 6.5% GDP growth in the final quarter of 2020.
Helped by strict virus containment measures and emergency relief for businesses, the economy has recovered steadily since the pandemic hit. Despite a calamitous start to the year, China was the only major economy to register growth in 2020 albeit its weakest in decades, at 2.3%. China has set an economic growth target of 6% for 2021, after scrapping its target last year.
