Now casting China’s GDP is not for the faint-hearted.

But, with the world’s second-largest economy in flux, some asset managers are up for the challenge.Vanguard, HSBC Global Asset Management (GAM) and Unigestion are among firms with nowcasting teams that aim to demystify China. Each has come up with ways to squeeze real-time insights from scant, irregular and incomplete official data, and make sense of the country’s distinct and evolving economic model.“While developed markets are so well