by Calculated Risk on 1/20/2010 09:36:00 PM

From Bloomberg: China Accelerates to 10.7% Growth Pace as Bubble Dangers Loom

Gross domestic product rose 10.7 percent from the same period a year ago ... a statistics bureau report showed in Beijing today.

The focus for China’s policy makers has now shifted to restraining the inflationary pressures that stem from their success in spurring a rebound. ...

The economy’s third straight quarterly acceleration highlights the risk that inflation may surge and asset bubbles form after monetary policy committee member Fan Gang said in November that growth of more than 10 percent is excessive.

Note that the headline number is the increase from Q4 2008 to Q4 2009 - as opposed to the annualized quarterly growth rate reported in the U.S.

And on the possibility of asset bubbles, from China Economic Review: Shanghai mortgages rise 1,600% in 2009 (ht Brian)

Banks lent out US$14.58 billion in new mortgages in Shanghai in 2009, a 1,600% increase from the previous year, the South China Morning Post reported. Of the total, US$5.7 billion went to buyers of new properties and US$8.88 billion to those buying second-hand properties, according to the People's Bank of China. Average prices of Shanghai homes rose 68% from 2008.