China's economy grew at 6.6 per cent in 2018, its slowest rate in almost three decades. The world's second biggest economy was grappling with the effects of the current trade war with the US and declining exports.

In the three months to December, the economy grew 6.4% from a year earlier, down from 6.5 per cent in the previous quarter. The data was in line with forecasts but underlines recent concern about weakening growth. China's National Bureau of Statistics (NBS)  said today that last year's growth rate was down from 6.8 per cent in 2017 and was the lowest since 1990  when growth rate  was 3.9 per cent. 

China's rate of expansion has raised worries about the potential knock-on effect on the global economy. The trade war with the US has added to the gloomy outlook. The US and China have been locked in an escalating trade spat since early 2018, raising import tariffs on each other's goods.