From January to May, the investment decline widened to 4.1%; the cumulative growth rate of manufacturing investment turned negative for the first time this year

[Caixin Net] Under the combined impact of factors including extreme heat and heavy rain in some regions, as well as the transition between old and new growth drivers, China’s fixed asset investment saw its year-on-year decline widen notably in January to May 2026, performing worse than market expectations.

Data released by the National Bureau of Statistics on June 16 showed that from January to May, national fixed asset investment fell 4.1% year on year cumulatively, with the decline widening by 2.5 percentage points compared with January to April. Excluding real estate development investment, investment fell 1.2% year on year, which was 2.5 percentage points lower than the previous figure, marking the lowest since 2024 when data became available. From the seasonally adjusted month-on-month basis, investment fell 1.91% in May, remaining negative for three consecutive months; the rate of decline narrowed slightly, indicating that investment momentum continued to slow.