China: Retail sales growth accelerates in March
In March, nominal retail sales grew 8.7% on an annual basis, up from the 8.2% increase in January–February. Moreover, the print beat the 8.4% increase expected by market analysts and represented the strongest result in six months.
March’s acceleration reflected stronger sales of oil and oil-related products and household appliances. Conversely, the contraction in automobile sales deepened in March.
On a seasonally-adjusted basis, retail sales expanded 0.91% in March, up from the 0.74% increase in February. Meanwhile, annual average growth in retail sales inched down from 8.8% in February to 8.7% in March.