A series of data for May shows China's booming economy is cooling down but analysts say it is too early to tell if it will manage a soft landing.
Investment growth slowed to 18.3% in May, nearly half the 34.7% seen in April, according to state-run
television, while M2 - the broad money supply measure - grew 17.5% during the month, the lowest rate since December 2002.
Numbers across the board indicate a slowdown, including industrial output which rose by 17.5% in May, down 1.6 percentage points from April.
Annual inflation, which figures today showed soaring to its highest level in more than seven years at 4.4%, also stayed well within expectations and short of the key danger point of 5% at which some argue the authorities could hike interest rates.
China's economy powered to 9.8% annual growth in the first quarter of 2004 from 9.1% in 2003 and economists have predicted an annual rate of up to 11.4% for the three months to June.
The government has been trying to slow the economy, adopting measures that have included higher bank required reserve ratios and other steps to curb bank lending to overheating sectors.
