China's economy maintained its recovery momentum in the January-April period, as industrial production remained resilient despite mounting headwinds and uncertainties, the National Bureau of Statistics said on Monday.

Photo via China Daily

The country's industrial output — a gauge of activity in the manufacturing, mining and utilities sectors — expanded by 5.6 percent year-on-year in the first four months of 2026, compared with 6.1 percent in the first quarter, official data showed. In April, the expansion eased to 4.1 percent from 5.7 percent in March.

Notably, equipment manufacturing and high-tech manufacturing posted robust growth in the January-April period, expanding by 8.7 percent and 12.6 percent year-on-year, respectively.

Retail sales, a key measure of consumer spending, increased by 1.9 percent year-on-year in the January-April period, after a 2.4 percent rise in the first quarter, the data showed.

Fixed-asset investment — a gauge of expenditures on items including infrastructure, property, machinery and equipment — fell by 1.6 percent year-on-year in the first four months, reversing the 1.7 percent growth recorded in the first quarter, according to the NBS.

The surveyed urban unemployment rate came in at 5.2 percent in April, down from 5.4 percent in March, the NBS said.

The NBS noted that China's economy remained generally stable and continued to make steady progress in the first four months of 2026, with foreign trade demonstrating strong resilience and new growth drivers maintaining robust momentum.

However, the external environment is becoming more complex and volatile, while the mismatch between strong supply and weak demand remains prominent, and some enterprises are still facing operational difficulties, the NBS said, calling for more proactive and effective macro policies in the next phase.