China's economic activity unexpectedly weakened in April despite resilient exports, increasing pressure on Beijing to roll out more measures to aid growth.
Official data released Monday showed weakness across the board as retail sales only inched higher while industrial production disappointed expectations and fixed-asset investments fell.
Government subsidies for consumer goods this year aren't as strong as last year's, with car sales weakening visibly in April, noted Zhiwei Zhang, Chief Economist at Pinpoint Asset Management.
"The strong performance of the exporters helped to mitigate the weaknesses in domestic demand, but not enough to fully offset it," said Zhang.
China has seen solid export growth in recent months, supported by global demand for artificial intelligence and green products.
