China factory output growth slows

Industrial production growth dropped to 10% in November from a month earlier, Agence France Presse reported, citing official data. The growth in industrial production slowed yet retail sales expanded at a faster pace, accelerating to 13.7% in November from the 13.3% registered in October. “Today’s data could be either market-neutral or slightly positive,” Bank of America Merrill Lynch economists wrote in a report on Tuesday. They added the figures might raise expectations for stronger growth in the current fourth quarter, while “the structure of the economy seems to be improved towards consumption.”