China’s fixed-asset investment increased by 1.8% in the January-February 2026 period, defying market expectations of a 0.4% fall. This followed a 3.8% drop in 2025, which marked the first annual decline since 1989 amid a sharp property downturn and tighter restrictions on local government borrowing. In the first two months of the year, infrastructure investment grew by 11.4% and manufacturing investment rose by 3.1%, more than offsetting an 11.1% drop in property investment. By industry, investment in the primary industry surged by 17.4% and the secondary industry increased by 5.4%, while investment in the tertiary industry decreased by 0.4%. Excluding the property sector, fixed-asset investment climbed by 5.2% in the January-February period. On a monthly basis, fixed-asset investment rose by 0.4% in February, marking the second consecutive month of growth, although slowing from a 1.3% increase in January.