China's Third Quarter GDP Growth Hits 4.5 Percent
China's economy grew 4.5 percent in the third quarter, driven by a surge in tech exports despite a severe domestic property and consumption slump.
The National Bureau of Statistics reported that China's economy grew by 4.5 percent in the third quarter of 2026, recovering from a 4.3 percent gain in the second quarter. This acceleration brings the expansion for the first nine months of the year to 4.6 percent, placing the country within its official annual growth target of 4.5 to 5 percent.
Growth was primarily driven by a surge in exports of technological goods and AI infrastructure components. September exports rose at their fastest year-over-year pace since 2010, with shipments to the United States increasing by 40 percent and to Europe by 25 percent. This export boom follows a September agreement between Xi Jinping and Donald Trump to implement reciprocal tariff reductions.
However, the official figures mask a severe domestic slump. Property investment fell 20.6 percent in the first nine months of the year, and retail sales remain weak due to a prolonged housing market crash and stagnant consumer spending. To counter these trends, the government implemented targeted interest-rate cuts, mortgage subsidies, and allocated 550 billion yuan in debt quotas to support local government infrastructure.
External challenges persist as the European Union maintains tensions over the volume of Chinese imports, leading Beijing to agree to a cap on hybrid vehicle shipments. While official data suggests a rebound, some Western economists remain skeptical, suggesting independent estimates are significantly lower.
