Pressure on China’s economy persists in August as investment, consumption slow - South China Morning Post

The drop in overall fixed-asset investment widened last month, as retail sales grew 0.4 per cent year on year

Mia Nurmamatin Hong KongandXinyi Wuin BeijingPublished: 10:00am, 15 Sep 2026Updated: 5:41pm, 15 Sep 2026China’s economy came under further pressure in August, as sluggish investment and consumption highlighted persistently weak domestic demand, although analysts expect a rebound in the fourth quarter as state intervention begins to take effect.

Retail sales, a major gauge of consumer spending, grew last month by 0.4 per cent year on year, according to data released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) on Tuesday.

Overall fixed-asset investment – covering major areas such as infrastructure, manufacturing and property construction – fell by 7.2 per cent in the January-August period, year on year, largely in line with a Wind forecast of a 7.19 per cent decline.