Back to Expansion

China’s economy rebounds despite headwinds triggered by COVID-19 Recovering from the contraction caused by the novel coronavirus disease(COVID-19)epidemic,China’s economy saw a better-than-expected performance in 2020.The GDP expanded 2.3 percent year on year to101.59 trillion yuan($15.6 trillion),exceeding the100-trillion-yuan($15.42 trillion)mark for the first time.The per-capita GDP exceeded$10,000for two consecutive years,narrowing the gap with high-income countries,data from the National Bureau of Statistics(NBS)showed.     

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National Economy in 2009 Last year was one of the most difficult periods for China's economic development in the new century.     

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Auto Boom China's auto market continues to thrive,though the sales boom is losing some shine.     

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The central bank on November 19 ordered commercial banks to set aside an additional 0.5 percent of their reserves amid looming inflationary risks.Investors are on the defense and preparing for the worst by buying up gold as a safe haven against inflation and market uncertainties.China’s stateowned enterprises earned a combined profit of 1.626 trillion yuan($245 billion) from January to October this year,soaring 44.8 percent year on year.In a push into renewable energies,China should enhance efforts in hydropower,wind power and inter-provincial trade,as well as green electricity schemes,said the World Bank.The aviation industry booms as air traffic increases.     

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Figures for October CPI and PPI The consumer price index(CPI), a barometer of inflation, grew 4.4 percent in October, a 24-month high and 0.8 percentage points higher than in Septmber, according to the National Bureau of Statistics(NBS).     

Plowing Ahead

The Chinese economy,with its growth reviving to 6.5 percent in the fourth quarter of 2020,is on track to a full recovery from the pandemic this year.The International Monetary Fund projected that China's economy will grow by 8.1 percent in 2021,according to its latest World Economic Outlook Update released on January 26.Hu Yifan,chief China economist of UBS Wealth Management,is even more optimistic.China's GDP growth this year could rebound to around 9 percent due to a low base in 2020,Hu said at the Forecast of China's Economy for 2021,a recent online discussion hosted by the National Committee on U.S.-China Relations.     

Economic Rebound Attracts More FDI

正The Western mainstream media has often lashed out against the Chinese Government and the country,but that has not resulted in a negative impact on China when it comes to attracting substantial flows of inbound foreign direct investments(FDI).     

Cash Injection Boosts The Real Economy

正The cash amount that should be reserved for Chinese financial institutions,or the reserve requirement ratio(RRR),was lowered by 50 basis points starting July 15,excluding those that have already held the ratio at a low level of 5 percent. The measure,part of the financial sector's efforts to support the real economy,would release about 1 trillion yuan($154.24 billion) in long-term liquidity,the People's Bank of China(PBC),the central bank,said.     

Still a Magnet

The COVID-19 pandemic still spreading globally has forced people to wear masks and reduce their outdoor activities, but women in pursuit of beauty have never really ceased to buy cosmetics. According to U.S.-based cosmetics giant Estée Lauder, its net sales for the first quarter (Q1) of the year reached $3.86 billion with a year-on-year increase of 16 percent, a number in which the Chinese market held some high stakes.     

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While the stock markets regain their momentum this year,China's securities regulators have issued new rules for public list-ings of start-up enterprises.Chinese fund management firms had their most difficult year on record in 2008,losing a total of 1.5 trillion yuan($219 billion) because of the meltdowns in the domestic stock markets.The country's central bank is sticking to its appropriately accommoda-tive monetary policy by refraining from withdrawing cash from the open market and issuing fewer central ba...     

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China has toppled the United States from its decadeslong position as the world’s largest auto market for the second consecutive year. New yuan-denominated loans, totaling 7.95 trillion yuan ($1.2 trillion) in 2010, indicate mounting inflationary pressures. China’s foreign trade recoups strength, with both imports and exports hitting record highs in December 2010. Chinese steelmakers reel from skyrocketing iron ore prices. The Purchasing Managers Index for the non-manufacturing sector rebounds as the service sector picks up steam.     

In Good Debt

China's outstanding foreign debt was more than$2.29 trillion at the end of the third quarter of 2020,up 7.6 percent from the end of the second quarter,according to the State Administration of Foreign Exchange(SAFE).     

Tracking the New Loans

In the first half of this year, aggregate new loans had reached a record high of 7.37 trillion yuan ($1.08 trillion). Where has the vast amount of the new loans gone? Has ballooning credit really helped fuel economic growth? Or has it worked to produce capital bubbles? Zuo Xiaolei, chief economist of China Galaxy Securities Co. Ltd. based in Beijing, offered her opinion in the Shanghai Securities News. Edited excerpts follow.     

From Passive Actor to Active Leader

The closing ceremony of the Fourth China International Import Expo (CIIE) took place in Shanghai on November 10. As the world's first dedicated import exhibition at the national level, the CIIE serves as an important platform for international purchasing, investment promotion, cultural exchanges and cooperation. The Fourth CIIE coincided with the 20th anniversary of China's accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO). The past two decades have seen China's economic aggregate jump from about 10 trillion yuan ($1.54 trillion) in 2001, to more than 100 trillion yuan ($15.4 trillion) in 2020, while its total foreign trade leapt to $4.6 trillion from $500 billion during the same period.     

Integration Key to Asia's Sustained Economic Recovery

THE Asian economy is projected to sustain recovery,and its annual growth rate may exceed 6.5 percent this year,as integration in regional trade strengthens,according to a key report is-sued on April 18. The COVID-19 pandemic will be the main factor directly affecting the eco-nomic activities in Asia,but the value chain is converging to China,thanks to the advanced regional integration of trade in goods and services,according to the flagship report of the Boao Forum for Asia Annual Conference 2021.The forum opened on April 18 in Boao,a coastal town in south Chinas Hainan Province.     

THE GREATER CALLING

Despite diverse challenges, the year 2021, which marks the beginning of the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25) period, has seen new progress on China's high-quality development, according to the annual Central Economic Work Conference, taking place in Beijing from December 8 to 10.     

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China steps up a clampdown on the financing vehicles of local governments control over local governments' financing vehicles will be tightened to fend off what some economists warn could turn into a mountain     

Picking Up Speed

China’s new-energy car market continues to expand Although China’s auto market shrank in the early months of 2020 as the novel coronavirus epidemic dampened demand,car sales have continued to expand in recent months.Data from the China Passenger Car Association(CPCA)shows that sales dropped 6.8 percent year on year last year,contracting from the year-onyear decline of 7.3 percent in 2019 as resumed sale of new-energy vehicles(NEVs)made key contributions.     

Trade and Opportunities

AfCFTA can benefit Africa’s youth and women and increase Sino-African cooperation The new year has come with good tidings for Africa despite the devastating economic effects of the novel coronavirus pandemic on the global economy.On the first day of 2021,African countries officially opened their markets under the continental free trade agreement(FTA)for duty-free trading of goods and services across borders.     

A Year of Extraordinaries

正The year 2021 celebrates the 100 th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China(CPC) and thus is an apt occasion to remember its innumerable services and countless sacrifices for the prosperity and progress of China and its people. The CPC, established in July 1921, is the world's largest political party. It is credited with the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949,