A labourer works at a residential construction site in Shanghai, yesterday. China’s economy regained speed in the final quarter of last year, pulling out of a post-global financial crisis downturn that produced the slowest year of economic growth since 1999. Evidence of a burgeoning recovery in exports, stronger than expected industrial output and retail sales, together with robust fixed asset investment, all signalled that Beijing’s pro-growth policy mix has gained sufficient traction to underpin a revival without yet igniting inflationary risks.