China’s fixed-asset investment eked out a lukewarm ascent of 3.7% year-over-year across the January to May 2025 window, trailing behind analysts’ tempered forecast of a 3.9% lift. This underwhelming uptick hints at a broader inertia shadowing the nation’s capital deployment rhythm.
Infrastructural outlays notched a 5.6% expansion, sustaining a modest growth arc, while investments in the manufacturing realm clocked in a heartier 8.5% surge, revealing a glint of resilience amid an otherwise pallid investment climate.
However, the real estate sector, long beleaguered, extended its tailspin, plunging by 10.7%, dragging sentiment and dampening overall momentum.
When segmented by industrial tiers, the primary sector recorded a spirited 8.4% increase, the secondary industry amplified by 11.4%, yet the tertiary sector slightly recoiled, dipping 0.4%, underscoring a deceleration in service-led capital activities.
Stripping out the sagging property sector, the nation’s fixed-asset investment showed firmer legs, advancing 7.7% over the five months, a figure that might suggest latent strength masked by real estate’s gravitational drag.
Zooming into the monthly cadence, May’s capital injection saw a barely-there rise of 0.05%, reflecting a teetering pulse in domestic fixed investment appetite.
The subdued figures paint a portrait of an economy tiptoeing through fragility, where pockets of industrial robustness are increasingly offset by entrenched structural woes, particularly in the housing domain.
China’s Fixed Asset Investment (Jan–May 2025)
| Category | Growth Rate (%) |
|---|---|
| Overall Fixed Asset Investment | 3.7 |
| Expected Growth | 3.9 |
| Infrastructure Investment | 5.6 |
| Manufacturing Investment | 8.5 |
| Real Estate Investment | -10.7 |
| Primary Industry Investment | 8.4 |
| Secondary Industry Investment | 11.4 |
| Tertiary Industry Investment | -0.4 |
| Excluding Real Estate | 7.7 |
| Monthly Growth (May) | 0.05 |
