Workers work at an assembling workshop of Jiangsu Huake Chuangzhi Technology Co Ltd at Suqian Laser Industrial Park in Suqian city, east China's Jiangsu province, May 13, 2020. (LI BO / XINHUA)

BEIJING - China's economic activities continued to normalize as the latest data on industrial output, retail sales and investment showed across-the-board improvements, but recovery still faces uncertainties and challenges from the global spread of the novel coronavirus.

The industrial sector was among the quickest to rebound from the impact of the virus, with the value-added industrial output returning to growth last month, the first expansion since the virus outbreak as factory activities recovered amid easing containment measures.

The value-added industrial output went up 3.9 percent year-on-year last month, rebounding from the 1.1-percent drop in March and 13.5-percent slump seen in the first two months of the year, according to data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

Output by the manufacturing industry reported the quickest recovery by expanding 5 percent year-on-year, with high-tech manufacturing rising 10.5 percent and equipment manufacturing rising 9.3 percent.

Industrial output went up 3.9% year-on-year last month, rebounding from the 1.1% drop in March and 13.5% slump seen in the first two months of the year, according to data from the National Bureau of Statistics

Output in industries in the production and supply of electricity, thermal power, gas and water reported a year-on-year increase of 0.2 percent, while the mining sector saw output up by 0.3 percent.

In the first four months, industrial output went down 4.9 percent year-on-year, with the rate narrowing 3.5 percentage points from the drop seen in the first quarter.

In a breakdown by ownership, output by the private sector went up 7 percent year-on-year.

The output of state-controlled enterprises edged up 0.5 percent, that of joint-stock companies rose 4 percent, and that of overseas-funded enterprises rose 3.9 percent.     

The industrial output is used to measure the activity of designated large enterprises with annual business turnover of at least 20 million yuan (about US$2.82 million).

With consolidated epidemic control efforts and the restoration of economic activities, major indices have sustained the momentum of growth since March, the NBS said in a statement.

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"But it is still challenging for the economy to wipe out the severe shocks incurred by the epidemic," said NBS spokesperson Liu Aihua at a news briefing in responding to a query about when the Chinese economy could return to growth.

China's economy shrank by 6.8 percent year-on-year in the first quarter as the virus outbreak dealt a huge blow to economic activity. While the epidemic has been basically brought under control at home, the global spread of the virus and collapsing external demand will complicate the future recovery of the world's second-largest economy.

Despite the uncertainties, Liu stressed confidence in the economy as the fundamentals and the trend of upward momentum in the long term have not changed, citing the country's economic scale, strong resilience, emerging new drivers and flexible macro policies as among the major factors underpinning growth.

As the virus has continued to spread overseas, China will timely adjust its response policies to push the full normalization of its economy, Liu said.

Fixed-asset investment

China's fixed-asset investment declined 10.3 percent year-on-year to 13.68 trillion yuan (about US$1.93 trillion) in the first four months of 2020, the NBS said.

The fall narrowed by 5.8 percentage points compared with the decrease in the first three months.

Fixed-asset investment declined 10.3% year-on-year in the first four months of 2020, the NBS said

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In breakdown, fixed-asset investment in the primary industry dropped 5.4 percent year-on-year, while that in the secondary and tertiary industries went down by 16 percent and 7.8 percent, respectively, according to the NBS.

The decline in the three industries narrowed by 8.4 percentage points, 5.9 percentage points and 5.7 percentage points, respectively, compared with the fall in the first three months.

Private investment decreased 13.3 percent to 7.74 trillion yuan during the period, and investment in high-tech industries dropped 3 percent in the first four months, NBS data showed.

Fixed-asset investment in April went up 6.19 percent from March.

Fixed-asset investment includes capital spent on infrastructure, property, machinery and other physical assets. 

Property investment

China's investment in property development went down 3.3 percent year-on-year in the first four months of this year, narrowing from the 7.7-percent decline in the first quarter, the NBS said.

Total property investment during the reporting period hit 3.31 trillion yuan (about US$466 billion), the NBS said.

Property investment went down 3.3% year-on-year in the first four months of this year, narrowing from the 7.7% decline in the first quarter, the NBS said

The investment in residential buildings went down 2.8 percent year-on-year to 2.42 trillion yuan in the period from Jan-April, 4.4 percentage points lower than the decline in the first quarter.

Commercial housing sales in terms of floor area totaled 339.73 million square meters in the first four months, down 19.3 percent year-on-year, 7 percentage points lower than the decline in the period of Jan-March.

In terms of value, commercial housing sales fell 18.6 percent to 3.19 trillion yuan in the four-month period, narrowing by 6.1 percentage points compared with the decrease in the first quarter.

The property development climate index compiled by the NBS went up slightly by 0.67 points from March to 98.86 points in April.

A customer tries on a pair of sunglasses at a duty-free experience shop in a resort in Sanya, South China's Hainan province, April 15, 2020. (PHOTO / XINHUA)

Retail sales

China's retail sales of consumer goods, a major indicator of consumption growth, declined 7.5 percent year-on-year in April, the NBS said.

The figure rebounded from a drop of 15.8 percent in March, NBS data showed.

In April, retail sales of consumer goods reached 2.82 trillion yuan (about US$398 billion), up 0.32 percent month-on-month.

Retail sales declined 7.5% year-on-year in April, rebounding from the 15.8% drop in March, according to NBS data

In the first four months, China's retail sales of consumer goods went down 16.2 percent year-on-year to reach 10.7 trillion yuan, narrowing from the 19-percent drop in the first quarter.

Retail sales in rural areas dropped 7.7 percent year-on-year in April, while that in urban areas decreased 7.5 percent.

The decline came as efforts to curb the spread of COVID-19 have kept people indoors, as well as shops and restaurants shut during the period.

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Revenues of the catering sector, one of the worst-hit industries, fell 31.1 percent year-on-year in April, said the NBS.

Meanwhile, online sales stayed relatively active as consumers turned to online services when staying indoors, up 1.7 percent year-on-year in the first four months, compared with a drop of 0.8 percent in the first quarter.

As the COVID-19 epidemic wanes in China, the country has been introducing a string of measures to revive consumer confidence as part of broader efforts to shore up the economy.

Local governments have started to offer vouchers to boost spending, while incentives for automobile purchase were introduced to prop up the sector considered pivotal in supporting the economy.