China beats expectations with 5.4pc GDP growth

Beijing | China's economy grew 5.4 per cent year-on-year in the first quarter, data showed on Wednesday, beating expectations thanks partly to a rush on exports, but an escalating trade war with the United States has darkened the outlook and raised pressure on Beijing to roll out more stimulus. Analysts polled by Reuters had expected first-quarter gross domestic product (GDP) to expand 5.1 per cent from a year earlier, slowing from 5.4 per cent in the previous three months. Loading… Reuters and AP