Chinese economy

March 7, 2025 9:56 AM

China’s January-February exports, imports weaker than expected

China's exports lost momentum over the January-February period and imports unexpectedly shrank, amid escalating trade tensions with the United States, dealing a blow to an economic recovery that has so far largely been reliant on exports. Exports from the largest manufacturing nation rose just 2.3% year-on-year, customs data showed on Friday, missing 5% growth forecast in a Reuters poll of economists, and slowing from December's 10.7% increase. Imports shrank 8.4%, following a 1.0% uptick in D...

March 5, 2025 10:34 AM

China ramps up stimulus to guard economy from changes ‘unseen in a century’

China unlocked more fiscal stimulus on Wednesday, signalling greater efforts to boost consumption as a means to ring-fence the economy's path towards this year's roughly 5% growth target amid an escalating trade war with the United States. Premier Li Qiang, in a speech at the opening of the annual meeting of China's parliament, warned that "changes unseen in a century are unfolding across the world at a faster pace." "An increasingly complex and severe external environment may exert a greater ...

December 16, 2024 11:30 AM

China’s fragile recovery: industrial gains, sluggish retail, and stimulus pressure as U.S. tariffs loom

China's industrial output growth quickened slightly in November, while retail sales disappointed, keeping pressure on Beijing to ramp up stimulus for a fragile economy as it braces for more U.S. trade tariffs under a second Trump administration. The mixed set of data underlines the challenges facing Chinese leaders heading into 2025 when trade relations with the United States could worsen at a time when domestic consumption also remains weak. "China's economy appears to have slowed last month,...