Chinese economy still on right track

The robust growth in China's industrial and retail sectors has defied expectations, with the uptick in industrial activity and spending indicating the effectiveness of government policies aimed at supporting domestic demand.

According to statistics released by the National Bureau of Statistics on Monday, the industrial sector grew by 6.2 percent last month, up 1.5 percentage points from October, while the retail sector grew by 8.0 percent, an increase of 0.8 percentage points on the month before.

Given the mounting external uncertainties associated with the trade war with the United States, and the internal challenges arising from the domestic transition to higher quality growth, the positive growth momentum is commendable, and can be credited to the government's resolute efforts to keep the economy on track.

Although the infrastructure and property sectors' growth remained lackluster in November — which would have been taken as a telling sign of the decline of the economy in previous years when investment was one of the most important drivers of growth — this is a result of the government's policy choices and its determination to refrain from resorting to quantitative easing stimulus measures, which would hurt the economy and embolden the governments of various levels to invade the market and create distortions.

True, the traditional year-end consumption spree has inevitably provided a boost for industrial growth and retail sales. Nonetheless, along with other positive signs, including the stable 2.4 percent growth in foreign trade over the past 11 months, the upbeat data demonstrate that the fundamentals of the economy remain healthy and are evolving on the right track in a predictable way.