China factory output gathers pace, rising 9.6pc Retail sales also beat forecasts, rising 14.5pc last month from a year ago, which compared to predictions of 14pc and September's 14.2pc reading. The consensus view among economists is that a seven-quarter long cyclical downturn in China's growth ended in the third quarter, when it dipped to 7.4pc year-on-year. A tepid rebound to 7.7pc is anticipated in the fourth quarter, with its mild nature restraining many investors from making aggressive turnaround bets, as evidenced by 10 of the 27 analysts polled by Reuters having forecasts below the median. Data released earlier in Friday showed consumer inflation eased to its slowest pace in nearly three years in October, giving policymakers scope to further loosen monetary policy if needed to support growth in the world's second-biggest economy. The consumer price index (CPI) rose 1.7pc from a year ago, slower than the 1.9pc posted in September. Economists polled by Reuters had expected inflation to hold steady. Factory-gate prices in October fell 2.8pc from a year earlier, a touch faster than the forecast fall of 2.7 pc but easing from September's 3.6pc annual drop, which bodes well for a corporate sector struggling to cope with falling profits due to producer price deflation. The headline consumer price index reading was the lowest since January 2010. "I don't expect any easing in monetary policy until the end of this year because it would be unnecessary as the economy is recovering," Yao Wei, China economist at Societe Generale in Hong Kong, told Reuters. Beijing has been fine-tuning economic policy for a year to support growth, and analysts expect that programme to broadly remain in place after a new leadership of the ruling Communist Party is unveiled at a congress that began on Thursday. Outgoing party chief, President Hu Jintao - almost certain to be succeeded by Vice President Xi Jinping - said in a speech to the congress that China would stick to policies fostering sustainable, long-term economic development with the aim of doubling GDP over the 10 years to 2020. China has cut benchmark interest rates twice this year, lowered bank reserve ratios three times since late 2011 and made repeated, large-scale liquidity injections into the financial system to underpin slowing growth in the short-term.