OFFICIAL data shows China’s economy in the first quarter grew at its slowest pace in 18 months, but two proxies point to some resilience.

    Electricity output — an indicator favored by Premier Li Keqiang over gross domestic product — and crude steel production grew faster in March than in the preceding two months. In addition, steel output in March hit a record high, the National Bureau of Statistics said.

    Electricity output in March was up 6.2 percent from a year earlier to 453 billion kilowatt-hours, faster than the combined 5.5 percent pace of January and February (the two months were counted together to limit distortions from the Lunar New Year holidays). Steel production was up 2.2 percent to a record 70.3 million tons. That compares with a 0.6 percent expansion in February and a contraction of 3.2 percent in January.

    The data added to a sense China’s economy may have stabilized in March. Other data released yesterday — including retail sales and industrial production — edged up from the previous two months.

    In part, the uptick is seasonal: Economic activity usually is subdued during the Lunar New Year holidays and rebounds in March. But the upturn might also signal a return of confidence, however fragile, among manufacturers.

    “It’s possible that some of the destocking in the manufacturing sector had run its course by March,” said Bill Adams, senior international economist for PNC Financial Services Group. An indicator for manufacturing activity in March showed large enterprises posting a strong expansion, Adams said.

    Trade data showing March copper imports up 31.4 percent from a year earlier and iron ore imports up 15 percent also point to resilience in the industrial and construction sectors.

    Still, there’s no doubt the economy is slowing. China’s first-quarter GDP was up 7.4 percent from a year earlier — slightly more than analysts expected, but lower than the fourth quarter’s 7.7 percent and the slowest pace of growth since September 2012.

    The electricity- and steel-growth numbers for March were weaker than last year’s, when the economy expanded 7.7 percent. Growth in electricity output in March was still well below last year’s average 7.6 percent. Its 5.8 percent expansion in the first quarter was slower than broader economic growth. Crude steel production in the month lagged behind last year’s average 7.5 percent growth rate.(SD-Agencies)