China GDP growth falls by an alarming margin; lowest in 25 years

QUICK PILL

• The growth of China\'s Gross Domestic Product slowed to 6.9 per cent in 2015.

• The national bureau of statistics reported that GDP growth in the last quarter of 2015 was 6.8 per cent.
• The slump, the lowest in 25 years has sparked global alarm.

The growth of China's Gross Domestic Product slowed to 6.9 per cent in 2015 - the country's lowest since 1990 - data showed on 19 January.

The national bureau of statistics reported that GDP growth in the last quarter of 2015 was 6.8 per cent.

The world's second largest economy is down from 7.3 per cent in 2014. The slump, the lowest in 25 years has sparked global alarm.

According to reports, Asian markets either fell or stayed flat following the report. The Nikkei 225 index dropped 121.44 points while the Topix index of all First Section issues on the Tokyo Stock Exchange dropped 11.20 points.

A Hong Kong based analyst allayed fears of a collapse of the Chinese economy. The Guardian quoted Gordon Kwan, a Hong Kong-based analyst at Nomura Holdings as saying:

"China's GDP growth is not collapsing, even though the fourth-quarter figures are slightly lower than expectations...The Chinese economy is in decent shape, despite the recent hype about how it is on the verge of collapse".