China's economy grows 7.4% in Q1 on-year

Let's hope the situation there can be resolved without any further loss of life. Turning now to China... where official data has been released on the country's economic growth rate for the first quarter. Paul, what was the final tally? The Chinese economy grew 7.4 percent in the January to March quarter... compared to the same period a year earlier. That's slightly higher than market expectations of 7.3 percent but it still represents the slowest growth rate in 18 months... for the world's second-largest economy. But authorities have ruled out any major stimulus measures in order to fight... what they called... short-term dips. A spokesman for China's National Statistics Bureau said Wednesday that the Q1 growth stayed within a reasonable range and showed the domestic economy still faces downward pressure. Economists are split over Beijing's economic outlook. Some analysts say China's GDP growth will continue to lose momentum through 2014... unless the government takes greater steps to stabilize the economy.