Category: Economy

China’s economy narrowly missed expectations for growth to hit 14-year lows in 2013, though some economists say a cooldown will be inevitable this year as officials and investors hunker down for difficult reforms. The chance that the world’s second-largest economy may decelerate in coming months was underscored on Monday by data that showed growth in investment and factory output flagged in the final months of last year. Waning momentum capped China’s annual economic growth at a six-month low of 7.7 percent in the October-December quarter, a slowdown some analysts say may deepen this year as China endures the short-term pain of revamping its growth model for the long-term good. Full-year growth in 2013 was 7.7 percent, steady from 2012 and just slightly above market expectations for a 7.6 percent expansion, which would have been the slowest since 1999. "It’s like a Chinese medicine," said Lu Zhengwei, […]

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China’s growth slowed slightly in the fourth quarter as Beijing eased back on efforts to rev up the economy, signaling a potential slow start for the new year as the country’s leaders seek to reshape the world’s second-largest economy. Many economists already expect the Chinese economy to slow further in the coming year as the country’s leaders prepare to introduce reform measures. These would be aimed at reducing the economy’s dependence on investment and trade and boosting its reliance on domestic spending and the expansion in the service industries. The nation’s economy grew 7.7% in the fourth quarter from a year ago, slower than the 7.8% it posted in the third quarter, according to data released Monday by China’s National Bureau of Statistics. For the year it also posted 7.7% growth, matching the revised pace it recorded in 2012. "There was steady economic progress [last year] and this was […]

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China’s growth slowed slightly in the fourth quarter as Beijing eased back on efforts to rev up the economy, signaling a potential slow start for the new year as the country’s leaders seek to reshape the world’s second-largest economy. Many economists already expect the Chinese economy to slow further in the coming year as the country’s leaders prepare to introduce reform measures. These would be aimed at reducing the economy’s dependence on investment and trade and boosting its reliance on domestic spending and the expansion in the service industries. The nation’s economy grew 7.7% in the fourth quarter from a year ago, slower than the 7.8% it posted in the third quarter, according to data released Monday by China’s National Bureau of Statistics. For the year it also posted 7.7% growth, matching the revised pace it recorded in 2012. "There was steady economic progress [last year] and this was […]

Click here to view full article at online.wsj.com

China’s economy slowed in the fourth quarter of last year, highlighting the challenge facing Beijing as it attempts to implement painful reforms while maintaining the economic momentum needed to avoid defaults on its growing debt pile. Gross domestic product in the world’s second-largest economy expanded 7.7 per cent in the fourth quarter compared with the same period a year earlier – a slowing from 7.8 per cent growth in the third quarter, according to figures released by the government on Monday. Growth of 7.7 per cent for the whole of 2013 matched full-year growth in 2012, thanks in large part to an investment-heavy “mini-stimulus” in the third quarter last year that offered a temporary boost. Economists expect China’s full-year GDP growth in 2014 to come in at about 7.4 per cent, the slowest pace since 1990, when Beijing faced international sanctions as a result of the 1989 Tiananmen Square […]

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Time for Beijing to prioritise stability over growth For the past two decades China’s turbocharged growth has been the envy of the rich world as well as an aspiration for other emerging markets. Surging exports and intensive state-driven investment have lifted millions out of poverty and propelled Beijing into the exclusive club of global economic superpowers. More recently, however, doubts have emerged over the sustainability of this development model. In particular, critics point to China’s increasing addiction to cheap credit , which began when Beijing unleashed its large-scale monetary stimulus at the height of the financial crisis. Between 2008 and 2012, China’s total debt as a proportion of gross domestic product nearly doubled, jumping from 125 per cent to 215 per cent. This rise would not have been so problematic if the cash had been used to fund profitable investment. However, the opposite is often true. The more vibrant […]

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Move over, Janet Yellen and Ben Bernanke. Step aside, Mario Draghi and Haruhiko Kuroda. Compared with Zhou Xiaochuan, the longtime governor of the People’s Bank of China, they are all lightweights when it comes to monetary stimulus. The latest data released by China on Wednesday shows that the country’s rapid growth in money supply has continued. Mr. Zhou and his colleagues have only begun the difficult and dangerous task of reining it in —– a task that still lies ahead of the United States Federal Reserve as it begins its own gradual taper this year. China’s money supply, broadly measured, has now tripled the money sloshing around its economy since the end of 2006. That dwarfs the indirect effects of quantitative easing in the United States, where the broadly measured money supply rose only 55 percent from 2006 through the end of November. China’s tidal wave […]

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China’s export growth slowed in December while imports accelerated, possibly helping to temper fears of a slowdown in the world’s second-largest economy. Exports rose 4.3 percent to $207.7 billion, slowing from November’s 12.7 percent expansion, trade data showed Friday. Imports rose 8.3 percent to $182.1 billion, up from the previous month’s 7.6 percent. Stronger exports might be a sign China’s domestic demand is relatively strong despite concerns a modest economic recovery is weakening. China’s economic growth tumbled to a two-decade low of 7.5 percent in the second quarter. It rebounded to 7.8 percent the following quarter but private sector analysts say that recovery is likely to fade. The Cabinet in late December said it expected 2013’s full-year growth to be 7.6 percent, which would be the weakest performance since 1999. "Our country’s economic development was stable overall," said a government spokesman, Zheng Yuesheng, at […]

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China’s export growth slowed in December while imports accelerated, possibly helping to temper fears of a slowdown in the world’s second-largest economy. Exports rose 4.3 percent to $207.7 billion, slowing from November’s 12.7 percent expansion, trade data showed Friday. Imports rose 8.3 percent to $182.1 billion, up from the previous month’s 7.6 percent. Stronger exports might be a sign China’s domestic demand is relatively strong despite concerns a modest economic recovery is weakening. China’s economic growth tumbled to a two-decade low of 7.5 percent in the second quarter. It rebounded to 7.8 percent the following quarter but private sector analysts say that recovery is likely to fade. The Cabinet in late December said it expected 2013’s full-year growth to be 7.6 percent, which would be the weakest performance since 1999. "Our country’s economic development was stable overall," said a government spokesman, Zheng Yuesheng, at […]

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