A continued property crisis and weak consumption dragged on China's economic recovery in July, according to data released Thursday by the National Bureau of Statistics. Unemployment rose for the first time since February, clocking in at 5.2 per cent, compared to 5 per cent in June. Industrial production also rose more slowly than the previous month, showing a 5.1 per cent year-on-year increase in July, compared to a 5.3 per cent rise in June. Retail sales grew slightly more than analysts had expected, rising 2.7 per cent year-on-year in July, compared to 2 per cent in June. Statistics bureau spokesperson Liu Aihua said the recovery in consumption will be further consolidated given recent government policies to boost consumer spending. Beijing announced plans last month to use 150 billion Yuan (USD 20.9 billion) in government debt to finance trade-ins for consumer goods such as appliances and cars to stimulate spending. Consumption contributed around 60 per cent of China's economi