(Xinhua/KPL​) -- The strong performance of the Chinese economy on many fronts in the first month of the fourth quarter makes it premature for some analysts in the West to conclude that China will miss its annual economic targets. On the contrary, the country is increasingly confident of achieving its economic goals and will remain a major engine driving global growth.

The fourth quarter usually contributes the biggest share of China's annual economy, accounting for more than 27 percent in recent years. According to a number of leading economic indicators released recently, there has been a significant increase in positive factors for economic growth, while the fourth quarter has made a good start thanks to a package of incremental policy measures, including a cut in the reserve requirement ratio, deed tax reductions and trade-in programs for consumer goods.

Consumption, investment, exports and market sentiment all improved significantly in October, while the service production index grew at its fastest pace this year. The real estate production index last month realized growth for the first time since June 2023, and the retail sales of consumer goods was up 4.8 percent year on year in October. The value of goods exports jumped by 11.2 percent year on year in October, the highest rate since May 2023. The manufacturing purchasing managers' index stood at 50.1 last month -- returning to expansion after staying below 50 for five straight months.

The improvement of major economic indicators in October is encouraging and remarkable. This trend is highly likely to continue in the last two months of the year, as the confidence of enterprises and consumers has been shored up.

The fourth quarter is traditionally a key time for production and consumption. Notably, sales of automobiles and home appliances increased substantially in October. China's new energy vehicle sales reached 1.43 million units last month, up 49.6 percent year on year -- with nearly 90 percent of these units sold in the domestic market.

In addition, recent active trading in the property and stock markets further demonstrated improved public expectations. In October, the transaction volume of new commercial housing and existing homes increased by 3.9 percent year on year, the first increase after dropping for eight consecutive months. Also encouraging was the average daily turnover of the Shanghai and Shenzhen stock exchanges, which reached 1.98 trillion yuan in October, a surge of nearly 150 percent.

KPL