China bets its economic future on consumers, and they aren’t spending enough

CHINA’s economic slowdown spilled over to consumers and home buyers last month in a turn that economists said points to difficulties ahead, even as the government tries to bolster growth by boosting infrastructure investment.

Spending on automobiles, staple foods and other consumer products grew at the slowest pace in five months in October, while growth in property sales was its slackest in a half-year, according to official data released Wednesday. Meanwhile, central-bank data released Tuesday showed the amount of new bank loans fell lower than forecasters’ expected last month.