Asian stocks opened lower on Monday in cautious trade, as China posted higher-than-expected economic growth but officials still warned of “significant challenges ahead”. Tokyo’s benchmark Nikkei 225 index was down 1.25 per cent in early trade, while Hong Kong and Sydney were closed for holidays. Stocks in Shanghai, which reported the first COVID-19 deaths since the start of its weeks-long lockdown, were slightly down. China’s largest city and economic powerhouse has stewed under a patchwork of lockdown restrictions this year amid the country’s worst COVID-19 outbreak since the start of the pandemic. The country reported first-quarter economic growth of 4.8 per cent, the National Bureau of Statistics said, as the pandemic threatens Beijing’s ambitious annual growth target. That figure was up from 4.0 per cent in the final months of 2021. The world’s second-biggest economy was already losing steam in the latter half of last year with a property slump and regulatory crackdowns. All of this adds to pressure on officials to meet the country’s full-year growth target of around 5.5 per cent, in a key year for President Xi Jinping who is eyeing another term in power. “We must be aware...