China: Firm economic data - TDS

According to analysts at TD Securities, the Chinese data was firmer than expected almost across the board.

Key Quotes

“Notably industrial production rose 8.5% y/y (cf. 5.9%), retail sales were up 8.7% y/y (cf. 8.4%) and last but not least, GDP rose 6.4% in line with TD forecasts, but slightly above the market (cf. 6.3%).”

“This data follows on from last week’s firm monetary aggregates (new loans, M2, aggregate financing) and manufacturing PMIs, all of which suggest that not only is stimulus beginning to work, but it could be working better than expected. The turnaround in indicators in March has been particularly stark and has managed to overcome the softness in data in Jan/Feb.”