Hong Kong (CNN Business) China's economy could be showing renewed signs of life in 2019.

The world's second-biggest economy grew slightly more than expected in the first quarter of 2019, Chinese government figures showed Wednesday. It expanded by 6.4% compared to a year ago, beating economists' forecasts of 6.3%.

The prospect of a deeper slowdown in China has been one of the biggest concerns for the global economy this year. China's growth has been hit by a trade war with the United States and government efforts to rein in a huge amount of debt in China's financial system.

"This confirms that China's economic growth is bottoming out and this momentum is likely to continue going into months ahead," said Tai Hui, chief market strategist for Asia-Pacific at investment firm JPMorgan Asset Management.

Chinese government statistics showed that growth in the first three months of the year was supported by strong manufacturing production and greater spending by Chinese consumers.

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