Asia Economy

China revises down 2014 GDP to 7.3% from 7.4%

CNBC.com with Reuters
WATCH LIVE
John Phillips | CNBC

China's National Bureau of Statistics on Monday revised down 2014 gross domestic product (GDP) growth to 7.3 percent from a previously reported 7.4 percent.

This growth revision comes on the back of comments by China's Finance Minister Lou Jiwei over the weekend that GDP growth will remain around 7 percent in 2015, as predicted earlier in the year, and the new economic normal may last for four to five years.

A lower GDP number for 2014 should also make year-on-year comparisons for economic growth in 2015 more favorable.

Gross domestic product stood at 63.6 trillion yuan ($10.00 trillion) last year, down by 32.4 billion yuan from the initial estimate, Reuters reported, citing the statistics bureau.

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"China revises growth data every year, but it's usually upwards. In that regard, it is unusual that the revision was downwards," said Dariusz Kowalczyk, senior economist and strategist at Credit Agricole.

"Rationally speaking, a 0.1 percent revision isn't a big deal - and it doesn't tell us much about the Chinese economy, but when it comes to sentiment, this is a negative development," he said.

The government will not particularly care about quarterly economic fluctuations and maintain steady macro-economic policy, Lou said, according to a statement late Saturday on the People's Bank of China website.

China is headed for its slowest economic expansion in 25 years in 2015 and mainland markets have slumped 40 percent since mid-June, sending global financial markets skittering.