China growth slows as trade turmoil weighs on economy

China’s economy has slowed as trade turmoil triggered by US President Donald Trump’s tariffs and a prolonged crisis in the property market weigh on growth.

Official figures show the world’s second largest economy grew by 5.2% in the three months to the end of June, compared to the same time last year. That’s down from 5.4% in the previous quarter.

But the country has so far avoided a sharp downturn, partly due to measures announced by Beijing to help support the economy and a fragile tariffs truce with Washington.

Trump has given China until 12 August to reach a long-term trade deal with the US to end a tit-for-tat trade war that saw their tariffs on each other soar to more than 100%.

Some economists expect China to miss its “around 5%” annual growth target this year.

“The real question is by how much. We believe it will defend a floor of 4%, which remains the minimum politically acceptable level,” Dan Wang, director for China at consultancy Eurasia Group told the BBC.

A tariffs war between China’s President Xi Jinping and Trump led to the US imposing a 145% levy on Chinese imports. In return, Beijing introduced a 125% duty on some US goods.

Washington has also hit countries with close economic ties to China with heavy levies.