China’s broad budget expenditure shrank at a faster clip amid an unprecedented drop in income earned by local governments from land sales, an alarming sign for an economy desperately in need of fiscal support.

Despite the challenges, China’s policymakers have seemed unwilling to deploy a stimulus package to jumpstart growth.

GfK's Consumer Confidence Barometer has tumbled further into negative territory since the end of August. The index had been recovering after the years of the Covid pandemic, rising prices and higher interest rates had dented the outlook for many.