Investors were unmoved by the data, with the yuan’sof the key 7 level to the dollar on Thursday weighing on sentiment. The CSI 300 Index of stocks fell 1.2% by the midday break, leading drops in Asia equities. The yuan weakened 0.1% to 7.0187 per dollar as of 11:37 a.m. in the offshore market, while the yield on 10-year government bonds rose 2 basis points to 2.68%.
Helen Qiao, chief economist for Greater China at BofA Global Research, said the data suggest annual growth may still be able to reach 3.5% this year, although domestic demand remains weak. “We need to see more policy action to help,” she said in an interview on Bloomberg TV. “In our view, the only policy that will help is to relax the Covid controls.”
The government and central bank took several steps recently to support the housing and construction industries, seeking to bolster an economy that’s slowed sharply this year. Government spending on infrastructure has also been ramped up and the central bank has cut interest rates to spur growth. The People’s Bank of China refrained from another interest rate cut this week as the currency comes under pressure. The offshore yuan