China Economy Expands by 1.3% in Q3 Compared with 0.8% in Q2

Highlights

• The Chinese economy expanded by 4.9% in Q3 year-over-year vs. 6.3% in Q2.
• A pickup in economic activity was evident late in Q3, suggesting effective stimulus policies from Beijing.
• Fed speeches and US President Biden’s visit to the Middle East need consideration later today.

Chinese Economy Slowed Less Than Expected in Q3:

Economic indicators from China beat expectations on Wednesday, raising hopes of a turnaround in the Chinese economy.

The economy expanded by 4.9% in the third quarter year-over-year compared with 6.3% in the previous quarter. Economists forecasted growth of 4.4%. Economic activity picked up in the third quarter. The economy grew by 1.3% quarter-on-quarter vs. 0.8% in Q2. Economists predicted growth of 1.0%.

Retail sales and unemployment figures signaled a sharp pickup in activity in September. Retail sales rose by 5.5% in September year-over-year vs. 4.6% in August. Notably, the unemployment rate fell from 5.2% to 5.0%.

Industrial production increased by 4.5% compared with 4.5% in August.

The latest figures suggest stimulus measures from Beijing have been effective in weathering the economic storm.

The Aussie Dollar Reaction to the China Numbers

Before the numbers, the AUD/USD rose to a pre-data high of $0.63670 before falling to a low of $0.63509.

However, in response to the numbers from China, the Aussie dollar fell to a post-stat low of $0.63510 before rising to a high of $0.63751.

This morning, the Aussie dollar was up 0.09% to $0.63705.

Next Up:

US housing sector data and Fed speeches will garner interest on Wednesday. After the hotter-than-expected US retail sales report, Fed speeches may have more sway on the markets.

Voting members Michelle Bowman, Patrick Harker, Christopher Waller, and John Williams may influence the market bets on Fed rate hikes.

However, investors must monitor news updates on the Middle East conflict. An escalation would fuel a market wide flight to safety and dampen optimism from the China data.