China’s headline GDP growth picked up slightly in Q4 2016 to 6.8% y/y, but subcomponent data showed that GDP growth had only a limited relationship to heavy industrial activity or investment growth. Our recap of the full-year 2016 macroeconomic data also takes a closer look at the impact of rising commodities prices on trade flows, the surprising pickup in property sector indicators in December, and the outlook for credit and bank asset growth amidst tighter money market conditions.
