China’s twin-track economy is generating doom-and-gloom headlines about domestic woes one moment and growing fears around the world about the dominance of its manufacturers the next.
Data published on Monday showed ongoing strength in industrial production more than offset by tepid consumption as the property slump continues, leading to the slowest quarterly growth pace in five quarters. But through the fog a silver lining is becoming clear: Chinese President Xi Jinping’s long quest for technology-driven "high-quality growth” is actually starting to pay off.
While Japan and America both suffered deep economic setbacks when their housing markets hit the skids, China’s tech advances and a resulting export boom have helped to keep economic growth within reach of its targeted pace of around 5%.