2024年4月经济数据点评：4月经济：工业稳、固投扩、就业升

Industrial Growth - The national industrial added value for January to April increased by 6.3% year-on-year, accelerating by 0.2 percentage points compared to January to March[1] - In April, the industrial added value grew by 6.7% year-on-year, up by 2.2 percentage points from the previous month, with a month-on-month increase of 0.97%[1] - The growth is influenced by factors such as holiday timing and high base effects from the previous year, with expectations for internal momentum in industrial enterprises to be stimulated as policies take effect by the end of 2023[1] Investment Trends - Fixed asset investment (excluding rural households) for January to April saw a cumulative growth rate of 4.2%, with manufacturing investment growing by 9.7% and infrastructure investment (excluding power, heat, gas, and water supply) increasing by 6.0%[31] - Real estate development investment decreased by 9.8% year-on-year, with new housing starts, construction, and completions all showing negative growth[31] - High-tech industries are leading the acceleration in manufacturing investment, with high-tech manufacturing and services growing by 9.7% and 14.5% respectively[65] Policy Impact - The government is expected to accelerate the implementation of policies aimed at large-scale equipment updates and consumption upgrades, which will support manufacturing investment[7] - The issuance of an additional 1 trillion yuan in government bonds is anticipated to increase the fiscal deficit rate to approximately 3.8%[10] - Demand-side policies are crucial for restoring industrial enterprise confidence, as highlighted in the central work conference[3] Consumer Behavior - Online retail sales of physical goods increased by 11.1%, accounting for 23.9% of total retail sales of consumer goods[2] - The consumer market is showing signs of recovery, although the automobile market is experiencing a slowdown[37] Employment Situation - The urban surveyed unemployment rate for January to April was 5.2%, a decrease of 0.2 percentage points year-on-year, indicating overall stability in the employment situation[30]