China’s economic slowdown is deepening, official figures show

China’s economy grew in the third quarter at its slowest pace since the start of last year, as the country struggles to maintain impressive growth.

For the year, the gross domestic product (GDP) increased 4.6%, according to the National Bureau of Statistics of China. That’s slower than the previous quarter and below the government’s “around 5%” target for this year.

However, it was slightly better than analysts had expected, and other official figures released on Friday, including retail sales and factory output, also beat forecasts.

In recent weeks, Beijing has announced a number of measures aimed at supporting growth.

This is the second quarter in a row that China’s official economic growth rate has fallen below the 5 percent target, adding to the government’s concerns.

“The government’s growth target this year now appears to be in serious jeopardy,” former head of the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) China unit, Eswar Prasad told BBC News.

“It will take a big boost to growth in the fourth quarter to hit the target.”

Official figures also showed that prices for new homes in China fell in September at the fastest pace in nearly a decade, signaling that the downturn in the property sector is deepening.

“Surprisingly, the property market is still the biggest drag on China’s growth,” said Lynn Song, chief economist at China-based banking giant ING.

“New investment won’t see much of a recovery until prices stabilize and real estate inventories decline… until then real estate will remain a significant driver of growth.”

Earlier on Friday, China’s central bank said it held a meeting to ask banks and other financial institutions to increase lending to support growth.

Last month, the People’s Bank of China (PBOC) announced a major package to revive the country from the pandemic, including major cuts in interest rates and loan rates.

These plans also included help with a flagging stock market and measures to encourage banks to lend more money to businesses and individuals.

Since then, the Ministry of Finance and other government agencies have unveiled other programs aimed at improving economic growth.

The world’s second-largest economy has been hit by a number of challenges, including the infrastructure crisis, and weak consumer and business confidence.