Growth in spending on factories, real estate and other fixed assets in the first seven months of the year fell to 24.9 percent, down from 25.5 percent for the first half, the National Bureau of Statistics reported.

Retail sales rose 17.9 percent, down from 18.2 percent growth for the first half of the year.

The consumer price index, or CPI, rose 3.3 percent over a year earlier, its fastest rate this year as summer flooding wrecked crops and disrupted shipping.
The jump was driven by a 6.8 percent surge in food costs. But analysts expect inflation to fade quickly.

A statistics bureau spokesman said the declines in economic indicators for July were “not big” and could be positive for official efforts to improve China’s economic efficiency. He gave no sign the government plans to change policy.

The central bank reported Wednesday that total lending by China’s banks fell to 532.8 billion yuan ($78.7 billion), down nearly 12 percent from June’s 603.4 billion.

Also in July, growth in exports fell to 38.1 percent from June’s 43.9 percent. Australian miners and other companies that have enjoyed a windfall from Chinese demand have warned that their sales growth will slow.

Source : Konaxis