Asian traders give mixed reaction as Chinas economic growth slows [Video]

Asian markets were mixed Friday as data showing China’s economy grew slightly quicker than expected last year failed to inspire investors, with Beijing battling to revive consumption and boost the battered property sector.

The five percent expansion was in line with the target set by Beijing but the weakest since 1990 — excluding the pandemic years — as leaders fought to address weak consumption and a painful debt crisis in the vast property sector.

A survey of 12 economists by AFP forecast growth of 4.9 percent.

A surge in the final quarter, helped by a string of stimulus measures, and a boost in retail sales were also unable to inject much optimism onto trading floors, which were already cautious as dealers prepare for Donald Trump’s second term amid fears of another China-US trade war.

The 2024 growth figure came in the face of a “complicated and severe environment with increasing …