(Yicai Global) March 15 -- Amid stable growth policies, China’s economy has continued to recover, with consumer spending, investment, and industrial production growth accelerating in the first two months of the year, according to official data.

Fixed-asset investment jumped 12.2 percent in January to February from a year earlier, an increase of 7.3 points over the whole of last year, figures released by the National Bureau of Statistics today showed.

China saw improved momentum in its economic recovery in the first two months of the year thanks to the combined effect of macro policy strengthening and the efforts of market players, NBS spokesperson Fu Linghui said at a press briefing. That has laid a solid foundation for a good start in the first quarter, Fu added.

The government beefed up macroeconomic adjustments at the start of 2022 while maintaining investment in infrastructure is the traditional starting point, Zheng Houcheng, director of the Yingda Securities Research Institute, told Yicai Global.

Guided by policy, commercial banks have been lending ahead of schedule, spurring infrastructure investment, Zheng said.

Covid-19 is not yet under control overseas and China’s exports have maintained a high growth rate, according to Li Chao, chief economist at Zheshang Securities. The continuous expansion of exports has also boosted China’s manufacturing sector and investment in industry will continue to maintain a relatively strong growth momentum, he said.

China’s retail sales of consumer goods rose 6.7 percent in January and February from a year ago, an increase of 5 points from December, NBS data showed.

Consumer spending is expected to continue picking up as the economy recovers and policies that expand domestic demand to boost consumption take effect, Fu said.

Wu Chaoming, chief economist of Caixin Securities, told Yicai Global that in the context of increasing difficulties in stabilizing exports, it is necessary to enhance the driving force of domestic demand on economic growth to achieve this year’s gross domestic product target. The government has set a goal of about 5.5 percent for 2022. Boosting incomes is the key, Wu said.

The value-added output of industrial firms rose 7.5 percent in the first two months, 3.2 points faster than in December, NBS data showed.

Fu cited five reasons for China’s accelerated industrial production in the first two months: strengthened energy supply guarantees; enhanced local policies to stabilize economic growth; more support for key industries and fields; better market demand and relatively strong industrial exports.

Looking ahead, Fu said the pandemic is still spreading across the world, while China’s economic recovery is also uneven. Companies still face rising costs and the foundation for sustained economic recovery is not yet solid, he added.

Editors: Xu Wei, Peter Thomas