China’s ecoonomy picks up pace with 4.5% growth in Q3

BEIJING: China’s economy grew 4.5% in the third quarter of 2026, fuelled by global demand for artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure, which helped it offset weak domestic consumption and a deepening property market crisis. It is a recovery of sorts for the world’s second-largest economy as the growth fell to 4.3% in the second quarter, its lowest since 2022, weighed down by stagnant domestic demand and higher energy costs linked to the Iran war, offsetting the robust export growth.The economy generated about $16 trillion in output during the Jan-Sept period, according to data released by National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) on Monday. However, the recovery remains uneven, with manufacturing and exports driving growth while household spending and investment continue to struggle, raising questions about the sustainability of the expansion. “The steady economic performance from the first three quarters has laid a good foundation for the achievement of the annual target,” Mao Shengyong, deputy director of NBS, said.You use AI every day. Now get your AI Quotient. Take the AIQ test.