Economy to gain momentum in H2: report

The slowing economy will gain traction in the second half of this year, supported by improving exports and household consumption and a rebounding property market, a Chinese bank has forecast.

"Against the backdrop of a mild global economic recovery, China's exports may grow moderately in the second half of this year, and broader economic growth may pick up," said the report from the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC), which was carried in Friday's Shanghai Securities News.

China's full-year economic growth rate may reach around 7.1 percent, predicted the ICBC, China's top lender.

The government's pro-growth measures since the start of 2015 led to a better-than-expected year-on-year GDP growth of 7 percent in the second quarter, unchanged from the first quarter.

Industrial upgrades, agricultural modernization, new products and business models spurred by mass entrepreneurship and more innovation will help economic growth in the coming months, the ICBC said.

The recent revival of the property market, especially in first-tier cities, is conducive to boosting consumption of furniture, electrical appliances and home renovation, said the report, albeit cautioning that many cities face the challenge of reducing heavy housing inventories.

However, the improvement of China's economic activity in recent months was "weaker than expected" as energy consumption, iron and steel production, railway freight volume and other economic indicators remained lackluster, it said. Endi