Questioning China’s economic growth data

China released its economic growth data earlier this month, just two weeks after the second quarter ended and directly in line with expectations 7.6%. The number was high enough to give the impression that a hard landing was not on the cards.

This marks the sixth consecutive quarter of slowing growth, down from 7.7% in the first quarter of this year and from 8.1% a year ago. Even so, this fits with a government narrative that says the slowdown in the world’s second-biggest economy is stabilising ahead of a recovery in the third or fourth quarter. But the figure also drew its fair share of scepticism.

Analysts...