According to the report released by the National Bureau of Statistics of China, retail sales rose 17.7% last month from the year-ago period, missing the 25% growth forecasted for April. It also marked a slowdown from the 34.2% year-on-year increase reported in March.
On the other hand, online sales of consumer goods rose 23.1% during the first four months.
After last week, the People’s Bank of China noted that the foundation for a robust economic recovery is not yet solid and consumer spending remains constrained, the Bureau of Statistics reiterated the fact.
In a separate report, the urban unemployment rate came in at 5.1% in April, down from 5.3% reported in March.
At the moment of writing, USD/CNH is trading 0.06% higher at 6.444.
Sources: cnbc.com, forexfactory.com