China's fixed-asset investment sees steady growth in Jan-Feb

BEIJING, March 15 (Xinhua) -- China's fixed-asset investment witnessed steady growth in the first two months of this year in the latest signal of a sustained economic recovery, official data showed Wednesday.

The fixed-asset investment went up 5.5 percent year on year to 5.3577 trillion yuan (about 780 billion U.S. dollars) in January and February combined, 0.4 percentage points higher than the full-year growth rate of 2022, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said in a statement.

In breakdown, investment in infrastructure construction reported a robust 9-percent increase in the period, and manufacturing investment also maintained growth momentum, up 8.1 percent. However, capital inflows in property development slipped 5.7 percent.

NBS spokesperson Fu Linghui told a press conference on Wednesday that investment will continue to drive China's economic growth and the country will step up investment to address the problem of unbalanced and inadequate development.

Wednesday's data showed that high-tech industries came as a bright spot, with investment up 15.1 percent. Specifically, investment in high-tech manufacturing and services expanded by 16.2 percent and 12.3 percent, respectively.

More capital support was also given to improving people's livelihoods as investment in public health and education went up 18.8 percent and 4.8 percent, respectively.

Speaking at the press conference, Fu pointed out that the real estate market has seen some positive changes despite the continued drop in property investment. The investment decline narrowed from last year's 10 percent to 5.7 percent in January and February, and home sales also logged smaller declines in both floor area and value.

The property market is still under adjustment and will gradually stabilize with the improvement of the overall economy and market expectations, Fu said.