China’s consumers, while wary of big-ticket purchases like cars or apartments, are spending again. Many factories are still running below capacity, but exports are strengthening. Even as construction of new housing is slowing, investment in infrastructure and manufacturing is robust.Despite lingering pockets of economic weakness, China is recovering faster than expected after the government in early December abruptly lifted “zero Covid” measures like shutdowns and mass testing that had effectively choked growth.The economy expanded 4.5 percent from January through March compared with the same months in 2022, the country’s National Bureau of Statistics said Tuesday. The rise was driven in large part by consumers: Retail sales, a barometer of spending, jumped 10.6 percent in March from a year earlier despite a slump in car sales.The stakes for t …
