China’s economy grew 6.6% in 2018, slowest rate in 28 years

Beijing (AFP) – China’s economy grew at its slowest rate in almost three decades in 2018 and lost more steam in the last quarter of the year, official data showed on Monday, amid a debt battle and a US trade war.

The world’s second-largest economy posted 6.6 percent growth last year and 6.4 percent in the October-December period — in line with a forecast by analysts surveyed by AFP — according to the National Bureau of Statistics.

The government had set a 2018 growth target of around 6.5 percent.