[China’s economy is projected to grow 8.5 percent this year before slowing to 5.4 percent in 2022, according to a World Bank estimate in June. The country logged 2.3 percent growth for 2020, a year in which most major economies shrank because of the pandemic.]
The world’s second-largest economy
“achieved a stable recovery in the first half of the year,” Liu Aihua, a
spokeswoman for the National Bureau of Statistics, said at a media briefing.
“However, we must be aware that the pandemic is still spreading globally and
the international landscape is complicated with high uncertainties and
instabilities.”
[China
needs a baby boom to avert a demographic crisis. Small steps won’t be enough.]
There are signs that officials are
concerned the post-pandemic economic rebound may flag. China’s central bank cut
reserve requirements for banks last week, a move aimed at stimulating the
economy by allowing more money to circulate instead of being held in reserve.
After ramping up its vaccination
rate in recent months, Chinese authorities announced this week that half of the
nation’s people have been inoculated against the coronavirus, according
to state media reports. The domestic economy has largely returned to normal
operation, although authorities have maintained strict border controls, with
three weeks of quarantine required for inbound travelers.
“China’s growth trajectory is
returning to a post-pandemic normal, with the government once again having to
balance the imperative of maintaining strong growth with mitigation of financial
and other risks,” said Eswar Prasad, an economics and trade professor at
Cornell University.
China is facing slower growth in
the second half of the year, but that may not be a bad thing, said Andy Xie, an
independent economist based in Shanghai.
“If the government manages to curb
housing bubbles and bad debts, China will probably have a healthier economy,
albeit somewhat slower growth,” he said. “The question is whether they have the
guts.”
At Thursday’s news conference, Liu
acknowledged the recovery has been unbalanced, requiring further efforts from
the government to maintain a stable course. Growth for the first half of the
year was driven by industrial manufacturing and domestic consumption, she said.
[Senate
approves sprawling $250 billion bill to curtail China’s economic and military
ambitions]
China’s economy is projected to
grow 8.5 percent this year before slowing to 5.4 percent in 2022, according to
a World Bank estimate in June. The country logged 2.3 percent growth for 2020,
a year in which most major economies shrank because of the pandemic.
In the first quarter, China
reported a record 18.3 percent growth, with the figure skewed high due to a low
comparison from a year earlier, when much of the country was shut down as the
virus began spreading.
In recent months, China’s
government has also cracked down on a number of the country’s most successful
Internet companies, prompting discussion over whether Beijing may be willing to
give up some economic growth in exchange for political stability.
Earlier this month, Chinese
regulators ordered the removal of Didi Chuxing, the country’s
equivalent of Uber, from domestic app stores, dealing a blow to the company
just days after its landmark U.S. listing. This followed an antitrust investigation into e-commerce giant
Alibaba.
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