China's economy grew 6.9% in the third quarter, the weakest rate since the global financial crisis.
The year-on-year growth rate is also below the government's 7% target.
Though
slightly above expectations, the data is expected to raise pressure on
policymakers to step up monetary policy to stem the slowdown.
China's economy has been hit by extreme stock market volatility over the summer and weak economic data, causing concern on markets around the world.
Most analysts were expecting growth figures of 6.8% for the July to September period.
The
latest growth figure comes after a slew of disappointing data out of
China. Earlier in the month, manufacturing data suggested the sector
continued to contract for September.
Imports saw a sharp fall for the past month while inflation eased by
more than expected, adding to fears of a rapid slowdown in the world's
second largest economy.
'Upgrading the economy'
China has been attempting to shift from an export-led economy to a consumer and services-led one.
Beijing
set an official growth target of "about 7%" for the overall year but
Premier Li Keqiang said a lower growth rate was also acceptable, as long
as enough new jobs were created.
"In order to restructure, the
economy will face some downward pressure," Sheng Laiyun, a spokesman for
the Chinese statistics agency, told reporters.
But despite a slowdown in the industrial sector, Mr Sheng said the services sector is expected to grow rapidly.
"All this indicates the restructuring and upgrading of the Chinese economy are going steadily."
However, analysts say the steep fall in imports suggests domestic demand is not as strong as the government would have hoped.
Analysis: Andrew Walker, BBC economics correspondent:
For
three decades, China's annual economic growth averaged 10%. Since 2010
it has slowed. Last year's figure was 7.4%, and it's generally accepted
this year will be slower, followed by a further deceleration in 2016.
The
quarterly figures we have had so far are consistent with that
expectation. The first and second quarters both showed economic activity
up by 7% compared with a year earlier.
Yes, these are Chinese
official figures whose reliability is widely criticised. But there is no
real doubt that growth is slowing, perhaps by a good deal more than
those official figures suggest. Read more from Andrew
Image copyrightAFPImage caption
There has been a slew of disappointing data out of China
More government measures?
The slowdown comes despite repeated interest rate cuts and other stimulus measures introduced by Beijing.
"The
government's measures helped dampen the downside pressures but the
problem is that these pressures on growth are actually pretty severe,"
Louis Kuijs of Oxford Economics told the BBC.
They could be seen in the industrial production data, in heavy industry and other sectors, he explained.
"What
keeps China going at the moment is consumption but this can not fully
offset those negative pressures on growth and therefore - even though we
see some stimulus coming from the government and we see that having
some impact - it's not enough to prevent growth from sliding further."
In the second quarter, growth did beat expectations, coming in at 7% from the previous year, matching growth in the first three months of the year.
Economists
are, however, continuing to call for more government action, as
volatility in the stock markets sparks concerns of financial turmoil and
potential social unrest.
Media captionChina's great balancing actImports saw a sharp fall for the past month while inflation
eased by more than expected, adding to fears of a rapid slowdown in the
world's second largest economy.
'Upgrading the economy'
China has been attempting to shift from an export-led economy to a consumer and services-led one.
Beijing
set an official growth target of "about 7%" for the overall year but
Premier Li Keqiang said a lower growth rate was also acceptable, as long
as enough new jobs were created.
"In order to restructure, the
economy will face some downward pressure," Sheng Laiyun, a spokesman for
the Chinese statistics agency, told reporters.
But despite a slowdown in the industrial sector, Mr Sheng said the services sector is expected to grow rapidly.
"All this indicates the restructuring and upgrading of the Chinese economy are going steadily."
However, analysts say the steep fall in imports suggests domestic demand is not as strong as the government would have hoped.
Analysis: Andrew Walker, BBC economics correspondent:
For
three decades, China's annual economic growth averaged 10%. Since 2010
it has slowed. Last year's figure was 7.4%, and it's generally accepted
this year will be slower, followed by a further deceleration in 2016.
The
quarterly figures we have had so far are consistent with that
expectation. The first and second quarters both showed economic activity
up by 7% compared with a year earlier.
Yes, these are Chinese
official figures whose reliability is widely criticised. But there is no
real doubt that growth is slowing, perhaps by a good deal more than
those official figures suggest. Read more from Andrew
Image copyrightAFPImage caption
There has been a slew of disappointing data out of China
More government measures?
The slowdown comes despite repeated interest rate cuts and other stimulus measures introduced by Beijing.
"The
government's measures helped dampen the downside pressures but the
problem is that these pressures on growth are actually pretty severe,"
Louis Kuijs of Oxford Economics told the BBC.
They could be seen in the industrial production data, in heavy industry and other sectors, he explained.
"What
keeps China going at the moment is consumption but this can not fully
offset those negative pressures on growth and therefore - even though we
see some stimulus coming from the government and we see that having
some impact - it's not enough to prevent growth from sliding further."
In the second quarter, growth did beat expectations, coming in at 7% from the previous year, matching growth in the first three months of the year.
Economists
are, however, continuing to call for more government action, as
volatility in the stock markets sparks concerns of financial turmoil and
potential social unrest.
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