BEIJING, CHINA / RankWire.AI / – China’s investment downturn deepened in July as property weakness and softer capital spending weighed on domestic activity. Fixed-asset investment fell 6.7% from a year earlier during the first seven months of 2026. The National Bureau of Statistics reported total investment of 26.03 trillion yuan, excluding rural households. Investment also declined 1.42% in July from June. Retail sales and industrial production continued to expand, but both recorded slower annual growth during the month.
Property development remained the biggest source of weakness in fixed investment. Real estate investment dropped 19.2% during the January to July period. Infrastructure investment fell 3.6%, while manufacturing investment declined 1.7%. Private investment decreased 9.4% from a year earlier. Even after excluding property development, overall fixed-asset investment fell 3.7%. The figures showed that weaker spending extended beyond the housing sector and affected several major areas of the domestic economy.
Consumer spending also lost momentum in July. Retail sales rose 0.6% from a year earlier to 3.90 trillion yuan, after increasing 1.0% in June. Industrial production gained 4.5%, slowing from 5.3% a month earlier. Factory output increased 5.3% over the first seven months. China’s official manufacturing purchasing managers’ index fell to 49.2 in July from 50.3 in June, putting the measure below the 50 level that separates expansion from contraction.
Property weakness extends investment decline
China’s investment decline has widened steadily during recent months. Fixed-asset investment fell 1.6% in the first four months of 2026 and 4.1% through May. The contraction reached 5.7% in the first half before deepening to 6.7% through July. Housing indicators remained under pressure. Floor space of newly built commercial buildings sold fell 11.8%, while the value of those sales declined 13.1% to 4.27 trillion yuan during the seven-month period.
Several technology-related industries continued to attract more investment despite the broader decline. Investment in high-tech industries increased 5.0% from January through July. Information services investment rose 19.2%, while aerospace vehicle and equipment manufacturing gained 12.3%. Electronic and communication equipment manufacturing increased 7.1%. Investment in intellectual property products advanced 9.1%. High-tech manufacturing output climbed 13.8%, and equipment manufacturing production rose 9.7% during the same seven-month period.
Exports remain stronger than domestic spending
China’s merchandise trade continued to post strong growth alongside the weaker investment readings. Total goods imports and exports reached 30.13 trillion yuan during the first seven months, up 17.3%. Exports increased 14.0% to 17.44 trillion yuan, while imports climbed 22.0% to 12.69 trillion yuan. July exports rose 17.8% from a year earlier, and imports increased 21.2%. Online retail sales of goods and services advanced 4.8% during the January to July period.
China’s economy expanded 4.7% from a year earlier during the first half of 2026. Second-quarter growth slowed to 4.3% from 5.0% in the first quarter. Consumer prices increased 0.5% year on year in July, while the surveyed urban unemployment rate stood at 5.2%. The Communist Party Politburo called in late July for stronger counter-cyclical adjustments and measures to expand domestic demand. The latest data followed weaker readings for investment, retail sales growth and industrial production.