China's Q1 GDP growth exceeds Eexpectations amid US tariff concerns

Underpinned by strong industrial output and consumption, China's first-quarter economic growth exceeded forecasts. However, economists worry that momentum might move abruptly lower as U.S. tariffs pose the largest risk to the Asian giant in decades. Beijing has imposed retaliatory levies on U.S. imports after President Donald Trump escalated tariffs on Chinese goods to exorbitant levels, raising the stakes for the two largest economies in the world and causing global markets to tremble.

China's GDP expanded 5.4% in the January-March quarter compared to the same period last year, according to data released on Wednesday. This growth was unchanged from the fourth quarter, but it exceeded experts' forecasts of a 5.1% increase in a Reuters poll.

However, as Washington's tariff shock strikes the vital export engine, growth momentum is predicted to slow dramatically over the next few quarters, putting pressure on Chinese officials to implement more support measures to keep the second-largest economy in the world on an even keel.