China cuts rates again as youth unemployment hits new record high

AI created summarization:

• China's central bank cut the key one-year lending rate by 0.1 percentage points to 2.65% on Thursday.
• This is the second rate cut this week, following a surprise cut on Tuesday to the seven-day reverse repo rate.
• The moves are aimed at boosting liquidity in the banking system and making short-term loans cheaper, as officials continue to try to shore up a sputtering economy.
• New government data on Thursday showed that retail sales rose 12.7% in May compared with a year ago, but that was down from 18.4% growth the previous month and less than economists were expecting.
• Industrial production grew 3.5%, in line with consensus estimates, but growth was weaker than in April.
• Urban youth unemployment hit another new high in May, reaching 20.8%.
• The majority of latest economic data are below the already-low consensus, and the latest rate cuts suggest that policymakers clearly feel the urgency to step up policy support.