The latest economic data presented a mixed picture: retail sales grew 0.4% in August from a year earlier, down from 0.6% in the prior month and below economists' forecast. Urban fixed-asset investment declined 7.2% in the first eight months of the year, compared with a 6.7% fall through January to July. Industrial output growth accelerated to 5.2% in August from 4.5% in July and exceeded economists' expectations. The urban survey-based unemployment rate rose to 5.3% from 5.2%.