China economy sees slowest growth in 25 years

China’s economy grew at its slowest pace in decades during 2015 after growth dropped to 6.8% over the closing quarter.

The Q4 data brought the country’s full-year growth figures down to 6.9%, which represents a 25-year low and is 0.1% down on Beijing’s official growth target.

Some observers, according to the BBC, believe China’s growth data is being inflated, but the country’s government has denied that the figures are inaccurate. China’s Premier, Li Keqiang, has said a slowdown would be acceptable if new jobs were being created.

With China being the world’s second-largest economy, having experienced rapid growth for years, some analysts believe growth figures lower than 6.8% could lead to calls for action from world leaders.

News of China’s slowing economic growth comes as Beijing wants to move its economy from one led by investment and exports to one driven by consumption and services.

John Zhu, a Greater China economist with HSBC, said: “While higher consumption can support growth in the short run, there is little in economic theory that emphasises the expenditure side of GDP as a driver of growth.”

Commenting further, John said China would rebalance towards consumption and services in time, but pushing the nation’s economy in that direction too soon “would be dangerous”.