China's factories fire up but consumer, property weakness persists

A worker at a textile factory in Fuyang, eastern China. — AFP

BEIJING: China's factory output topped forecasts in April, helped by improving external demand, although retail sales unexpectedly slowed and the property sector remained a drag on the economy, piling pressure on Beijing to do more to support growth.

Industrial output grew 6.7% year-on-year in April, data released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showed on Friday, accelerating from the 4.5% pace seen in March and above expectations for a 5.5% increase in a Reuters poll of analysts.