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China GDP
EconomyEconomic Indicators

China’s second-quarter GDP growth misses mark, with lowest reading since end of 2022

Growth rate of 4.3 per cent complicates the country’s push to meet annual targets, contrasts with strong trade figures

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An industrial robot assembly line in Foshan, Guangdong province. Photo: AFP
Sylvia Main ShanghaiandXinyi Wuin Beijing

China reported 4.3 per cent gross domestic product growth in the second quarter of 2026 shortly after recording strong, sustained momentum in exports – a contrast underscoring the need for policy support to address weak domestic demand and persistent economic imbalances.

The closely watched GDP figure, released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) on Wednesday, was the slowest quarterly growth rate since the end of 2022. The number fell below the 4.48 per cent forecast from economists surveyed by Chinese financial data provider Wind.

The second-quarter growth – which marked a deceleration from the 5 per cent expansion recorded in the first three months of 2026 – brought China’s first-half growth to 4.7 per cent, according to the bureau.

China’s exports remained resilient despite disruptions to global shipping routes and energy supplies caused by the US-Israel war on Iran, with outbound shipments rising 27 per cent in June and 17.6 per cent for the first half of 2026, both on a year-on-year basis.

Beijing has set this year’s growth target at “4.5 to 5 per cent” – a slight shift from the “around 5 per cent” goal that had been the recent norm – as the economy grapples with numerous headwinds, including weak domestic demand, a prolonged downturn in the property market and rising external risks.

Officials said that the GDP growth in the first half of the year laid the groundwork for achieving China’s full-year target.

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