China Consumption Miss Overshadows Factory Strength Amid Tariffs

China’s industrial output expanded faster than expected in April while consumption disappointed, highlighting the challenges facing the world’s second-largest economy despite a quick de-escalation of trade tensions with the US.

Industrial output climbed 6.1% year on year in April, slowing from the prior month but far exceeding the median estimate in a Bloomberg survey of analysts. Retail sales growth, a key gauge of consumption, also weakened from March to 5.1%, according to figures published by the National Bureau of Statistics on Monday, below economists’ projection.