China's industrial output growth further dips in November

BEIJING - China's industrial output grew 7.2 percent year on year in November, down from a 7.7 percent in October and 8 percent in September.

On a month-to-month basis, industrial output rose 0.52 percent from October, the same as in the previous month, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said in a statement.

For the first 11 months, industrial production growth decelerated to 8.3 percent year on year, down 0.1 percentage points from the first ten months of 2014, the NBS said. Growth in some key industries fell significantly, including car manufacturing, electrical machinery and equipment manufacturing, and general equipment manufacturing.

Industrial output growth has decelerated in the last four months. November's growth was the second lowest since April of 2009, with only August of this year recording a lower rate.

In August, year-on-year industrial output growth tumbled to 6.9 percent, raising market concerns that the "world's factory" was losing growth momentum.

China uses industrial production (officially called industrial value added) to measure the activity of designated large enterprises, each with annual turnover of at least 20 million yuan ($3.27 million).

At a crucial economic policy meeting that concluded Thursday, China's leaders said the economy still faces many challenges and downward pressure.

In the third quarter, growth slid to a low of 7.3 percent, a level not seen since the 2008/2009 global financial crisis, dragged down by a housing slowdown, softening domestic demand and unsteady exports.

Industrial production accounted for 44.2 percent of China's total GDP in the first nine months of 2014, making it one of the best leading indicators for GDP growth.

In addition to calendar effects and restrictions on factories and construction in Beijing and neighboring regions, slower export growth and weak investment were the main causes of slower industrial output growth, said Bob Liu, analyst at the China International Capital Corp.

November's deceleration was offset by stronger output of equipment for railways and shipbuilding, which grew 12.9 percent.

The telecommunication and computer sector, which registered a sharp acceleration of 12.2 percent in October, continued expanding at a relatively fast pace, at 12.6 percent in November.

Growth of total power generation slowed to 0.6 percent year on year last month, down from 1.9 percent in October.