China’s economy grows faster than forecast after AI boom boosts exports

China’s economy has grown by 4.6% in the first nine months of the year. Photograph: Peter Parks/AFP/Getty Images

Roaring exports lifted China’s economic growth in the third quarter of this year, with factory output growing much faster than consumer spending.

China’s GDP grew by 4.5% year-on-year between July and September, the National Bureau of Statistics of China reported on Monday. The figures were better than economists had expected and up from the second quarter’s growth rate of 4.3%.