China: Growth in retail sales decelerates in December
In December, nominal retail sales grew 9.4% year-on-year, the slowest pace registered since June 2003—excluding January and February which have strong seasonality. The figure, which came in below analysts’ expectations of a 10.2% rise, follows a 10.2% increase logged in November. The decline largely resulted from slowing auto sales in December.
On a seasonally-adjusted monthly basis, retail sales expanded 0.70% in December, down from the 0.81% increase in November. Annual average growth in retail sales came in at 10.2% in December, down from 10.4% in November.