China industrial output surges

Beijing: China´s industrial output and retail sales surged in the first two months of the year, official data showed on Monday, underscoring the country´s recovery from the coronavirus pandemic.

Industrial production spiked a forecast-busting 35.1 percent on-year, the biggest bounce in decades, while retail sales also beat expectations with 33.8 percent growth. But the National Bureau of Statistics said the latest surge was in part due to distortions from last year´s "low base in the same period".

Both indicators plunged in the early months of 2020 after Covid-19 surfaced in central China and spread rapidly around the country. However, the world´s second-largest economy became the first to bounce back globally after imposing strict lockdowns and virus control measures, clocking a full-year economic growth of 2.3 percent.