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China industrial output rises in March
April 13, 2009 - 2:09PM

China's industrial output rose by 8.3 per cent in March, in a sign that a huge stimulus package is kicking in, Premier Wen Jiabao says.

Last month's growth accelerated from the 3.8 per cent rise seen in the first two months as domestic demand continued to improve, Wen said, according to the China Securities Journal.

Data on fixed asset investment and retail sales, which measure spending on infrastructure and consumption respectively, also increased quickly in the first quarter, he said in an interview carried out in Thailand at the weekend.

All this showed the economy was performing "better than expected" thanks to Beijing's measures to tackle the international financial crisis, he said.

China in November unveiled an unprecedented four-trillion-yuan ($A819 billion) stimulus package to ward off the worst effects of the global crisis.

However, Wen warned that the nation's export-dependent economy was still facing major difficulties due to a sharp contraction in foreign demand, which has placed increasing pressure on employment.

"The international financial crisis has not yet hit the bottom. It's hard to say that China alone has steered away from the crisis," he said. "We should never overlook (the risks)."

Wen's comments came just days before the National Statistics Bureau is slated to release first-quarter data on the Chinese economy on Thursday.