Page 8 - China Economy

China's consumer inflation turns negative, raising deflationary concerns

Factory deflation extended into a 29th month, though the producer price index recorded a slower drop of 2.2 per cent compared to January's negative 2.3 per cent

China's exports, imports weaken in Jan-Feb as demand slides amid trade war

China's exports rose a less-than-expected 2.3% in January and February from a year earlier while imports fell more than 8% in a slow start to a year dogged by uncertainty over US tariffs and other policies. Economists had forecast that exports would rise 5% year-on-year and that imports would edge higher. China's overall trade surplus grew to $170.52 billion in the first two months of the year. China's customs agency typically publishes combined trade data for January and February to avoid any distortion from slowdowns during the week-long Lunar New Year holidays. Export growth cooled over the first two months of 2025, with tariff front-running providing less of a boost to demand than we had anticipated, said Julian Evans-Pritchard of Capital Economics. This slowdown comes before any substantial hit from tariffs, which will almost certainly lead to sharp falls in shipments to the US before long, he said. Evans-Pritchard said that the slowdown in imports suggests that the pick up i

China raises defence budget to $249 bn: How does it compare to India?

China's annual NPC highlighted a focus on keeping urban unemployment at 5.5%, creating 12 million new urban jobs, and advancing emerging tech in 2025

China keeps growth target at around 5% for 2025 amid US trade war risks

China is keeping its economic growth target at around 5% for 2025 despite a looming trade war with the United States and other headwinds. The target for GDP growth was announced Wednesday in a report being presented by Premier Li Qiang at the opening session of the National People's Congress, the annual meeting of China's legislature. It gives an indication of how ambitious the government is about boosting growth in challenging economic times. The IMF has projected China's economy will grow 4.6% this year, down from 5% in 2024, according to Chinese government statistics. A target of around 5% is well aligned with our mid- and long-term development goals and underscores our resolve to meet difficulties head-on and strive hard to deliver, the government report said. Across-the-board tariffs imposed on Chinese products by U.S. President Donald Trump pose the latest threat to an economy already weighed down by a prolonged real estate slump and sluggish consumer spending and private ...

China's factory activity picks on strong supply, demand; PMI rises to 50.8

Factory production accelerated in February from the previous month, while total new orders increased at the quickest pace in three months

China's new home prices stagnate in January on declining property demand

Analysts expect the stabilisation of China's property market, which has experienced a significant slump since 2021, will be a protracted process due to high housing inventory

China's Xi attends symposium on private enterprises, meets biz leaders

Xi delivered a speech after listening to representatives of private companies

Need a serious fall in Indian markets before I start buying: Jim Rogers

I do not like to buy markets that are making all-time highs. As a rule, if the markets are correcting and investor are not worried, I do not buy, Jim Rogers said.

Betting on advance of DeepSeek, China investors rush into AI-related stocks

Feverish buying has pumped up shares of Chinese chipmakers, software designers and data centre operators amid patriotic calls for an upward repricing of Chinese assets

DeepSeek AI to fighter jets: How China is one-upping western dominance

With groundbreaking advancements in artificial intelligence (AI) and cutting-edge military technology, the Asian giant is challenging long-standing Western dominance in innovation and defence

China Jan manufacturing activity shrinks unexpectedly, hits five-month low

China's $18 trillion economy hit the government's growth target of "around 5 per cent" over 2024 but in a lopsided fashion, with exports and industrial output far outpacing retail sales

China's R&D investment grows despite slower funding, US tops global list

China's R&D intensity, which measures expenditure as a percentage of GDP and serves as a benchmark for innovation capability and competitiveness, remained stable at 2.68 per cent in 2024

JLR owner says slow China economy hurting luxury car sales

Simultaneous shift toward advanced EVs in the market dominated by local manufacturers such as BYD is also hurting the likes of JLR, Porsche AG and Mercedes-Benz Group AG

India among top 3 least favoured Asian stock market amid multiple headwinds

Global fund managers overall expect less than 5 per cent return from Asia stocks (excluding Japan) in a year, according to BofA Securities

Country Garden expects to reach terms with creditors in Feb, tells lawyer

Country Garden said earlier this month it has proposed to creditors a debt restructuring that would cut its offshore debt worth $16.4 billion by 70 per cent

China's oil demand fading faster than expected, posing risks for producers

Combine domestic refinery processing with net exports of gasoline, diesel and the like, and the consumption of petroleum is about 300,000 daily barrels lower than in 2023

New home prices in China flat for first time in 18 months after govt push

Beijing rolled out a slew of measures in the second half of last year to stabilise the real estate market, including cutting mortgage rates and allowing local governments to buy unsold housing units

China's economy grows 5% in 2024, driven by exports, stimulus measures

China's economy expanded at a 5% annual pace in 2024, slower than the year before but in line with Beijing's target of around 5% growth, helped by strong exports and recent stimulus measures. In quarterly terms, the economy grew 5.4% in October-December, the government reported Friday. Exports accelerated as companies and consumers rushed to beat potential tariff hikes incoming President-elect Donald Trump may impose on Chinese goods. The national economy was generally stable with steady progress and new achievements were made in high-quality development, according to the report by the National Bureau of Statistics on Friday. Particularly, with a package of incremental policies being timely rolled out, the social confidence was effectively bolstered and the economy recovered remarkably, it said. Manufacturing was a strong engine for growth last year, with industrial output jumping 5.8% from a year earlier. Total retail sales of consumer goods grew 3.5% at an annual rate. Exports

Bessent criticises China's economic practices, proposes sanctions on Iran

During the Senate confirmation hearings, Bessent called China an 'unbalanced economy,' and described the nation as being in a 'severe recession'

China likely to cut pay by half for staff at its top 3 financial regulators

Staff at the People's Bank of China (PBOC), National Financial Regulatory Administration (NFRA) and China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) will see total income slashed by about hal