China beat government targets by reporting GDP growth of 6.8% on an annualised basis in the first quarter – but the news failed to spur regional stock markets.
“The market reaction to the data has not been overwhelming, mostly because the reading has come in line with expectations,” said Jameel Ahmad, global head of currency strategy and market research at FXTM, a foreign exchange broker.
The growth suggested China would meet its government targets for the rest of the year, said Ahmad, with domestic consumption rising strongly to counterbalance a weakness in industrial output.
He added that markets would be reassured that China’s recent wrangling over trade with the US had not yet had a noticeable negative impact on growth.
Despite the reports, at time of writing, the Shanghai Composite Index had lost about 8% of its value since the start of the year.
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