by Calculated Risk on 4/16/2009 12:58:00 AM

From MarketWatch: China's economy expands 6.1% in first quarter

Gross domestic product expanded 6.1% in the first quarter from a year earlier, after expanding 6.8% in the fourth quarter, government data showed Thursday.
...
The Chinese government said Thursday that recent economic data showed "positive changes with better performance than expected."

A spokesman for the National Bureau of Statistics in a statement Thursday cited improvement in agriculture and a steady increase in industrial production, despite falling profits.

However, the bureau also warned that problems remain, including a fall in demand for Chinese exports, reduced government revenue and increased difficulties on employment.

"The national economy is confronted with the pressure of slowdown," the spokesman said.

China reports GDP growth on a year-over-year basis, so this is the growth from Q1 2008 (as opposed to quarterly growth annualized like in the U.S.). Since growth was fairly robust early last year, this suggest GDP is probably slightly positive in the most recent quarter.