China Fixed Investment Growth Below Forecasts

China’s fixed-asset investment rose by 0.5% year-on-year in January–August 2025 period, much less than market expectations of a 1.4% growth, compared to a 1.6% increase in the first seven months. The contraction in property investment worsened, declining 12.9% (vs -12.0% in January–July). Investment growth also eased in infrastructure (2.0% vs 3.2%) and manufacturing (5.1% vs 6.2%). By industry, investment grew at softer pace in the primary industry (5.5% vs 5.6%) and the secondary industry (7.6% vs 8.9%), while investment in the tertiary industry dropped further (-3.4% vs -2.3%). Excluding the property sector, fixed-asset investment increased by 4.2% in January–August, following a 5.3% rise in the first seven months. On a monthly basis, fixed-asset investment decreased by 0.2% in August, following a 0.5% fall in July.