China Economics Weekly PBOC faces difficult choice as dollar strengthens The PBOC’s support of the renminbi against a strengthening dollar is resulting in a trade-weighted appreciation of the currency. This risks eroding Chinese export competitiveness and has a... 12th April 2024 · 7 mins read
China Economics Weekly Policy support for car sales won’t ease trade tensions The PBOC’s scrapping of the regulatory minimum down payment for car loans may help boost vehicle demand in the short run. But it won’t be enough to prevent a further increase in car exports, so... 5th April 2024 · 7 mins read
China Economics Weekly President Xi courts foreign firms President Xi has taken some steps to reassure foreign firms, many of whom remain keen to invest in China. But his wider agenda conflicts with establishing a level playing field for foreign firms. And... 28th March 2024 · 6 mins read
China Economics Weekly Policy support a temporary prop to construction Local government financing vehicles are ramping up land purchases to build more public housing, while developers are being given more financing to accelerate work on unfinished projects. This may... 22nd March 2024 · 4 mins read
China Economics Weekly Equipment investment push may aggravate imbalances Chinese policymakers want firms to increase equipment investment by 25% over the coming four years. If achieved, that would provide a temporary boost to domestic demand and GDP growth. But the lasting... 15th March 2024 · 6 mins read
China Economics Weekly New productive buzzwords China’s leadership is increasingly talking about “New Productive Forces” as the key to the country’s future economic success – harnessing them was the first Major Task for 2024 in the government Work... 8th March 2024 · 7 mins read
China Economics Weekly What to watch at the National People’s Congress The annual meeting of China’s parliament will open on Tuesday with a panoply of speeches and reports. Here’s what to focus on. 1st March 2024 · 6 mins read
China Economics Weekly New developer financing scheme shows promise The record 25bp cut to the 5Y Loan Prime Rate, the benchmark for price mortgages, captured the headlines this week. But of greater importance to China's property sector is the new "real estate... 23rd February 2024 · 6 mins read
China Economics Weekly Year of the Dragon: limited relief from economic woes The upcoming Year of the Dragon will bring some improvements to China’s economy, including an uptick in births, increased fiscal support and a further normalisation in consumer behavior. But with the... 8th February 2024 · 7 mins read
China Economics Weekly Xi wants faster growth in total factor productivity President Xi this week made clear that faster productivity gains are central to his “high-quality development” agenda. Focusing on raising productivity is a good idea in principle but making it a... 2nd February 2024 · 6 mins read
China Economics Weekly Stimulus only firing on one cylinder Large-scale liquidity injections have had little impact on economic activity recently and the upcoming RRR cut is likely to be no different. Quantitative monetary policy tools are ineffectual in an... 26th January 2024 · 7 mins read
China Economics Weekly Tech sector doing better, births may rise in 2024 After years of being buffeted by trade tensions and a domestic regulatory crackdown, China’s tech sector has finally regained a bit of momentum recently. And although China’s population will shrink... 19th January 2024 · 5 mins read
China Economics Weekly Stronger data ahead as PBOC continues to ease The Q4 GDP data due on Wednesday are likely to confirm what we’ve been saying for some time – that the economy was regaining momentum at the end of 2023 thanks to policy support. That recovery is... 12th January 2024 · 7 mins read
China Economics Weekly Investors price in rate cuts, PBOC taps lending scheme In contrast to elsewhere, bond yields in China continued to drop this week as investors increasingly come around to our view that further cuts to policy rates and reserve requirements are imminent... 5th January 2024 · 7 mins read
China Economics Weekly Policy still easing but not enough to hit growth target Although the Loan Prime Rates were left unchanged on Wednesday, today’s coordinated reductions in commercial bank deposit rates suggest the PBOC is still on an easing path. Meanwhile, a lower headline... 22nd December 2023 · 6 mins read
China Economics Weekly Officials in denial about extent of structural slowdown Policymakers seem to believe that with a bit of stimulus and a turnaround in sentiment, the economy can get back on a stronger path. While there is some truth to this, we think that officials are... 15th December 2023 · 6 mins read
