China Fixed Investment Drops 1.6% in Jan-Apr

China’s fixed-asset investment contracted by 4.1% year-on-year in the January–May 2026 period, exceeding market expectations for a 2.0% decline and worsening from the 1.6% drop recorded in the first four months of the year. Property investment remained the main drag, falling 16.2%, compared with a 13.7% decline in the January–April period, while smaller increases were recorded in infrastructure and manufacturing investment, easing to 0.6% from 4.3% and to 0.4% from 1.2%, respectively. Among industries, investment growth slowed in the primary industry (5.9% vs 10.1%) and the secondary sector (0.1% vs 2.5%), while investment in the tertiary sector fell further (-6.8% vs -4.2%). Excluding the property sector, fixed-asset investment decreased by 1.2% in the first five months of 2026, reversing from a 1.3% increase in the January–April period. On a monthly basis, fixed-asset investment fell by 1.91% in May, slipping further from a 2.36% drop in April.

China’s fixed-asset investment decreased by 1.6% year-on-year in the January–April 2026 period, against market expectations of a 1.6% increase and reversing a 1.7% rise in the first quarter. Property investment continued to decline (-13.7% vs -11.2% in January–March), while smaller increases were also recorded in infrastructure (4.3% vs 8.9%) and manufacturing (1.2% vs 4.1%) investment. Among industries, investment growth slowed in the primary industry (10.1% vs 15.9%) and the secondary sector (2.5% vs 5.8%), while investment in the tertiary sector fell further (-4.2% vs -1.0%). Excluding the property sector, fixed-asset investment rose by 1.3% in the first four months, slowing sharply from the 4.8% growth in the first quarter. On a monthly basis, fixed-asset investment dropped by 2.36% in April, following a 0.58% fall in March.

China’s fixed-asset investment rose by 1.7% year-on-year in the first quarter of 2026, falling short of market expectations for a 1.9% increase. The latest reading was slightly weaker than the 1.8% rise in the first two months. Property investment declined further, falling by 11.2% (compared with an 11.1% drop in January–February), partly offsetting gains in infrastructure (8.9%) and manufacturing (4.1%) investment. Among industries, investment in the primary sector climbed by 15.9% and the secondary sector grew by 5.8%, while investment in the tertiary sector dropped by 1.0%. Excluding the property sector, fixed-asset investment went up by 4.8% in the January–March period. On a monthly basis, fixed-asset investment increased by 0.52% in March, slowing from a 0.99% rise in February.