China39;s Q4 GDP grows 5.4 yy, beating market forecast
2024 GDP expands 5.0, meeting the government39;s target
But growth was unbalanced, led by industry and exports
Consumption lags as workers faces uncertainties
2025 outlook clouded by trade tensions as Trump returns

BEIJING, Jan 17 Reuters China39;s economy grew 5 last year, matching the government39;s target, but in a lopsided fashion, with many people complaining of worsening living standards as Beijing struggles to transfer its industrial and export gains to consumers.

The imbalance raises concerns that structural problems may deepen in 2025, when China plans a similar growth performance by going deeper into debt to counter the impact of expected U.S. tariff hikes, potentially as soon as Monday when Donald Trump is inaugurated as president.

December data showed industrial output far outpacing retail sales, and the unemployment rate ticking higher, highlighting the supplyside strength of an economy running a trilliondollar trade surplus, but also its domestic weakness.

Exportled growth has been partly underpinned by factory gate deflation which makes Chinese goods more competitive on global markets, but also exposes Beijing to greater conflicts as trade gaps with other countries widen. Within borders, falling prices have ripped into corporate profits and workers39; incomes.

Andrew Wang, an executive at a company providing industrial automation services for the booming electrical vehicle sector, said…