China's recovery quickens

China stepped up its economic recovery in the third quarter from the coronavirus shock but missed forecasts, pointing to continued challenges for one of the few drivers of global growth this year. Gross domestic product (GDP) grew 4.9% in July-September from a year earlier, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said yesterday, slower than the median 5.2% forecast by analysts in a Reuters poll and following 3.2% growth in the second quarter. The world's second-largest economy grew 0.7% in the first nine months from a year earlier, NBS said. Policymakers globally are pinning their hopes on a robust recovery in China to help restart demand as economies struggle with heavy lockdowns and a second wave of coronavirus infections. China has been steadily recovering from decades-low growth seen in the first months of the year caused by the coronavirus shock. Photo Nampa/AFP