2017.10.2002:48:00UTC+00China Posted Relatively Strong Economic Growth in the Third Quarter

China reported relatively upbeat economic expansion in the third quarter, propelled by a stronger service industry, though there were indications of weakness in real estate and construction, data showed.

According to the National Bureau of Statistics, China's property sector was up 3.9 percent in the quarter from 2016, slowing from 6.2 percent in the second quarter and the softest clip in almost two years.

China's third-quarter expansion eased only marginally to 6.8 percent from 6.9 percent in the quarter earlier.

Growth in construction activity deccelerated from 5.4 percent in the second quarter to four percent, the lowest growth since the fourth quarter of 2000, the NBS data showed.

Property and construction account for 13.3 percent of the economy, while property in itself directly affects 40 other industries.

Property sales fell for the first time in over 2-½ years in September and housing starts slowed significantly.

China reported forecast-beating growth in the first half of 2017, propelled by a significant turnaround in the long-ailing industrial sector, which accounts for a third of the economy.

The construction boom fueled demand and prices of building materials, while the resulting return of factory gate inflation has raised earnings for the country's heavy industry.

However, industrial growth slowed to 6.3 percent in the third quarter, from 6.6 percent in the period earlier.

The services industry grew eight percent in the third quarter, from 7.6 percent in the second quarter, propelled by an acceleration in the financial sector and solid expansion in information technology and other areas.