China's National Bureau of Statistics recently reported that the country's gross domestic product rose by 2.3% in 2020, its slowest pace since 1976, making China one of the few countries in the world that managed to grow during the year.
"The performance was better than we had expected," announced the National Bureau of Statistics' spokesman.
According to the data, China managed to grow by 6.5% in the fourth quarter, beating expectations of 6.1% and the previous quarter's 4.9%. China's recovery is attributed to the country's success in containing the COVID-19 pandemic, which caused its GDP to drop by 6.8% in the first quarter.
Consumption, on the other hand, dropped by 3.9% during the year. In Q4, it rose by 4.6%. In 2020 overall, consumption accounted for 54.3% of the GDP, having accounted for 57.8% in 2019. Industrial production rose by 7.3% in December, while the trade surplus rose by 27% during the year.
COVID-19 cases are currently on the rise in China, as the government recently reported 109 new infections, leaving the number of cases in mainland China at 89,336. The death toll remains unchanged at 4,635 deaths. The recent surge in cases pushed the Chinese government to put over 22 million people on lockdown.
By 6:52 GMT, Asian markets were mainly in negative territory. The Nikkei 225 fell by 0.97%, dropping to the 28,242.2 level, followed by the S&P/ASX 200, which fell by 0.78% to the 6,663.00 level and the Nifty 50, which dropped by 0.90% to 14,304.05. On the other hand, the Hang Seng gained 0.72%, hitting the 28,779.00 level.