, Columnist
China's Own Mind the Gap
Non-financial revenue growth is just 3.7%. With huge amounts of debt to service, that's a problem.
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Nothing about today's China GDP figures would convince anyone to change their mind. Bears would argue that the December quarter's 6.8 percent growth, the slowest in more than six years, shows the nation is edging toward a hard landing. Bulls would cite the same number to say that the very manageable slippage from the previous three months' 6.9 percent is sign of stability -- proof authorities are in control.
While it's impossible to decide the ``whither China'' debate based on a backward-looking expansion report, there's something in the data that's both puzzling and worrisome.