(Yicai Global) July 16 -- China's fixed-asset investment widened by 5.9 percent in June from a year ago, proving expectations of contraction wrong, as the nation expanded its investment in infrastructure amid the Covid-19 pandemic, according to official data.

A Yicai Global survey of 27 chief economists at major Chinese financial institutions had predicted that fixed-asset investment would fall by 3 percent from a year ago. In May, it had decreased by 6.3 percent.

In the first half, fixed-asset investment narrowed 3.1 percent to CNY28.16 trillion (USD4.03 trillion) from a year ago. This was a 3.2 percentage point smaller decline than that of the first five months of this year.

Editor: Emmi Laine