China: Industrial growth slows to lowest level in 6 years

Please note the word “growth” - this is a slowdown in “growth”, and if the U.S. had these kinds of numbers they’d be doing cartwheels in the streets. But considering the blistering pace of growth in China it’s a sign of things to come, and indeed economists there predict that industrial output will slow further:

China’s industrial growth in September hit a six-year low at 11.4% from a year ago, with economists anticipating further declines, the South China Morning Post reported. The figure, which was below the 12.8% recorded in August, was caused by a manufacturing ban for factories near Beijing in the runup to the Olympic Games, as well as slackening global demand due to the US financial crisis. While industrial output may recover somewhat for the rest of the year, now that the Olympics have passed, the outlook for next year is bleak.