Page 2 - China Economy

China's economy shows resilience, but ordinary citizens feel strain

By some measures, China's economy is looking resilient, with strong exports and breakthroughs in artificial intelligence and other advanced technologies. But that's not how it feels for many ordinary Chinese, who have been enduring the strain from weak property prices and uncertainty over their jobs and incomes. While some industries are thriving thanks to government support for technologies such as AI and electric vehicles, owners of small businesses report tough times as their customers cut back on spending. Some economists believe that the world's second largest economy is growing more slowly than official figures suggest, even though China may hit its official 2025 annual growth target of about 5%. Beijing has averted a damaging full blown trade war with Washington after President Donald Trump struck a truce with Chinese leader Xi Jinping, but many longer-term challenges remain. Chinese consumers are feeling the pinch -------------------------------------------- Business is v

China industrial profits tumble at fastest pace in a year amid weak demand

Profits fell 13.1 per cent year-on-year in November, accelerating from a 5.5 per cent drop in October, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) data released on Saturday

Sustainable growth path: China needs to do more to rebalance its economy

The government in Beijing has been far too hesitant in carrying out essential reform, and is now facing the consequences of that delay

How cars, batteries and low-cost goods shaped China's $1tn trade surplus

China's global goods surplus has surged past $1 trillion, driven by booming auto and battery exports, and a competitive edge from weak domestic demand and currency dynamics

IMF urges China to cut exports, boost consumption with bold reforms

The IMF upgraded its China growth forecast for 2025 to 5%, from 4.8%, citing the production powerhouse's strong outbound shipments, also lifting its 2026 forecast to 4.5%, from 4.2%

China's exports grow 5.9% in November despite 29% drop in US shipments

China's exports returned to growth in November following an unexpected contraction the month before, although shipments to the United States dropped nearly 29% from a year earlier in an eighth straight month of double-digit declines. Overall exports from China were 5.9% higher than last year in November in dollar terms, customs data released on Monday showed, at $330.3 billion, better than economists' estimates. That was an improvement from a 1.1% contraction in October. While exports from China to the US have fallen for most of the year, shipments have surged to other destinations, including Southeast Asia, Africa and Latin America. China's imports increased 1.9% in November, better than October's 1% growth, even though a persistent downturn in the property sector is still weighing on consumer spending and business investment. A year-long trade truce between China and the US was reached at a meeting between US President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping in late October in

Why China's electric trucks are becoming world's biggest diesel disruptor

China's rapid adoption of electric heavy trucks is already denting diesel use and could reset global fuel-demand trajectories faster than analysts expected

Reform panel moots easing restrictions on investments from China

The panel, in an internal report finalised in October, had suggested that the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) weigh the options and take a final call by December 31

China can't afford to ignore its army of gig workers amid job crunch

A bestselling memoir exposes the harsh reality of China's delivery workforce and why policymakers must prioritise protections as the economy pivots to high tech

China's diesel trucks shifting to electric; this could change global demand

China is replacing its diesel trucks with electric models faster than expected, potentially reshaping global fuel demand and the future of heavy transport. In 2020, nearly all new trucks in China ran on diesel. By the first half of 2025, battery-powered trucks accounted for 22% of new heavy truck sales, up from 9.2% in the same period in 2024, according to Commercial Vehicle World, a Beijing-based trucking data provider. The British research firm BMI forecasts electric trucks will reach nearly 46% of new sales this year and 60% next year. Heavy trucks carry the lifeblood of modern economies. They also contribute significantly to global emissions of carbon-dioxide: In 2019, road freight generated a third of all transport-related carbon emissions. Trucking has been considered hard to decarbonise since electric trucks with heavy batteries can carry less cargo than those using energy-dense diesel. Proponents of liquefied natural gas have viewed it as a less polluting option while ...

Why Chinese shoppers are choosing local luxury over premium foreign brands?

As the economy cools, spending on foreign premium brands has stalled. Instead, when Chinese consumers do splash out, they're turning to homegrown labels

China's economy slows as factory output, retail sales hit yearly lows

Retail sales, a gauge of consumption, expanded 2.9 per cent last month, also their worst pace since August last year, and cooled from a 3.0 per cent rise in September

China heads for longest slowdown in consumption growth since post-covid

Top government and Communist Party officials regularly state that they're committed to lifting domestic spending - something the US and other major trading partners have also long demanded

China's banks adopt revolving-door repayment model amid weak credit demand

To meet official lending targets, many Chinese banks are resorting to instant loan tactics where clients take out loans briefly and repay them soon after, masking low credit demand

China's producer price deflation eases in October as consumer prices rise

China's economic growth slowed to its weakest in a year in the third quarter, and the youth unemployment rate remained elevated despite a dip in September

China's exports fall 1.1% in Oct, hit by 25% drop in shipments to US

China's exports contracted in October, hit by a 25% drop in shipments to the United States, the government reported Friday. Persisting trade tensions with Washington may get a respite in the final quarter of the year after President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping agreed last week to de-escalate the trade war between the two largest economies. But trade friction still appears to be casting a pall on demand elsewhere. Customs data show a 1.1% drop in China's global exports in October compared to a year earlier, the weakest since February, following an 8.3% increase in September. Imports rose 1% last month from the year before, compared with 7.4% growth in September. China's shipments to the US have already fallen by double-digits for seven consecutive months, while it has diversified its export markets to regions such as Southeast Asia and Africa. The October decline also was affected by a high base for the same month in 2024, when exports growth soared more than 12.6%,

China's October factory growth slows as new orders weaken: PMI data

On the price side, the divergence of rising raw material prices and falling finished goods prices remains, keeping corporate profit margins under pressure

China's industrial profits rise for second consecutive month in September

A 21.6 per cent increase in industrial profits last month, the fastest pace since November 2023, followed a 20.4 per cent jump in August, data from the National Bureau of Statistics showed

China's Communist Party reshuffles elite ranks amid sweeping military purge

At the conclusion of the closed-door Fourth Plenum held in Beijing, the Party confirmed that 11 full members had been replaced, equalling the record high set in 2017's Seventh Plenum

China's economy slows to 4.8% in Jul-Sep amid trade tensions, weak demand

China's economy expanded at the slowest annual pace in a year in July- September, growing 4.8 per cent, weighed down by trade tensions with the United States and slack domestic demand. The July-September data was the weakest pace of growth since the third quarter of 2024, and compares with a 5.2 per cent pace of growth in the previous quarter, the government said in a report Monday. In January-September, the world's second largest economy grew at a 5.2 per cent annual pace. Despite US President Donald Trump's higher tariffs on imports from China, the country's exports have remained relatively strong as companies shifted their sales to other world markets. Tensions between Beijing and Washington remain elevated, and it's unclear if Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping will go ahead with a proposed meeting during a regional summit at the end of this month. Xi and other ruling Communist Party members are convening one of China's most important political meetings for the year on Monday,