Chinese manufacturing growth overtaken by finance amid IPO boom

CHINESE manufacturing grew slower than finance for the first time in years, turbocharged by capital raised through share sales during a quarter that saw a surprise rebound in the economy.With gross domestic product gaining 5 per cent in the first quarter of 2026, finance and manufacturing were among industries that saw a faster pickup than the economy as a whole, notching year-on-year growth of 6.5 per cent and 6.3 per cent, respectively. By contrast, expansion slowed in consumer-sensitive sectors like hotels and catering services, according to data released by the National Bureau of Statistics late last week.Spanning activities from insurance and banking to the securities sector, finance saw growth rise to a post-pandemic high after slowing for two straight quarters to end 2025. A surge in initial public offerings and booming stock trading in 2026 lifted activities in the industry, which is less than a third the size of China’s manufacturing.China’s stock market emerged as one of the best performers globally as investors sought shelter from the Iran war, thanks to the country’s stronger resilience against the global oil shock. In part as a result, the daily average stock turnover in China’s onshore markets jumped in the first quarter, hitting a record high in mid-January, according to Bloomberg-compiled data dating back to 2010.A total of 30 companies went public on mainland exchanges in the first quarter, according to state-run Shanghai Securities News, raising nearly 26 billion yuan (US$3.8 billion) – an increase of almost 60 per cent from a year earlier.Manufacturing growth meanwhile remained solid, as global demand boomed for Chinese products from electric vehicles to industrial robots. Exports surged 15 per cent in the first quarter from a year ago. The upswing in outbound shipments likely extended through April, given a strong correlation between them and China’s imports from South Korea. In the first 20 days of April, exports from South Korea to China jumped almost 71 per cent – a slight acceleration from the same period of March.High-frequency data from China’s ports shows cargo throughput is still well above 2025’s record-high levels, increasing about 7 per cent for the three weeks through Apr 19 compared with the same period in 2025.By contrast, sluggish consumer spending is weighing on the hotel and catering industry, which saw growth slow to 4.3 per cent from 5.6 per cent in the final quarter of 2025. Construction slumped 3.8 per cent, the most since early 2020, in a reflection of continued pain in the property industry. BLOOMBERG