China rides out the global economic slowdown

China - China's double-digit export growth is fueling the industrial production surge, helping the country withstand the global economic slowdown.

In a report by the statistics bureau, export growth climbed to 28.1% in May. The statistics bureau said output rose 16% in May last year from 15.7% in April.

For the first five months, industrial production climbed 16.3% from the year earlier. The industrial sector grew 7% in April while raw coal production rose 18.5% in May from last year after gaining 13.9% in April. Crude-oil output climbed 1.8% after increasing 0.5% while retail sales increased to 21.6%.

The country's overseas shipments increased last month and retail sales growth almost reached the highest in nine years despite the recent quake in Sichuan province. Production volume also increased due to the shortening of the seven-day May holiday to a three-day break.

Local officials said rising prices are the economy's biggest challenge this year. The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development said that global growth will slow to 1.8% from 11.9% last year to 10%.

"With export and domestic consumption holding up, China's policy makers are more concerned about inflation than economic growth,'" said Paul Tang, chief economist at Bank of East Asia Ltd in Hong Kong.