China’s fixed asset investment (FAI) fell -0.07% MoM in September and -0.5% YoY in Jan–Sep 2025, reflecting persistent weakness in private investment and services activity despite moderate growth in manufacturing and utilities.

• Private FAI declined -3.1% YoY, while state-owned holdings rose +1.0%, indicating continued reliance on public-sector support.

• By industry, primary investment grew +4.6% YoY, secondary investment rose +6.3%, and tertiary investment fell -4.3%, showing a widening divergence between industrial and service sectors.

• Within the secondary sector, electricity, heat, gas, and water supply investment increased +15.3% YoY, while manufacturing grew +4.0% and mining +3.7%.

• Among manufacturing subsectors, transport equipment posted strong gains: autos +19.2% and rail/ship/aerospace +22.3%; in contrast, pharmaceuticals (-9.9%) and electrical machinery (-9.5%) contracted sharply.

• Infrastructure (ex-utilities) rose +1.1% YoY, led by water transport (+12.8%), rail (+4.2%), and water conservancy (+3.0%), while road transport declined -2.7%.

• By region, FAI fell in the east (-4.5%) and northeast (-8.4%) but rose in the central (+1.5%) and western (+1.5%) regions.

• By registration, domestic enterprise investment dipped -0.6% YoY, Hong Kong/Macau/Taiwan investment edged down -0.3%, and foreign-invested enterprise investment fell sharply (-12.6%).

• By composition, building and installation investment dropped -4.1% YoY, while equipment and tools purchases surged +14.0%, underscoring a shift toward machinery and capital upgrades.