China Economics Weekly Developers finish more homes, renminbi unanchored In trying to anchor the renminbi to the dollar, the PBOC has now put itself at risk of repeating the mistakes that led to a messy sell-off in 2015. Meanwhile, there are early signs that efforts to... 23rd September 2022 · 6 mins read
China Economics Weekly Weak RMB inhibits easing, consumption takes a hit The PBOC has been trying to offer support to the economy this week without lowering its policy rates, but a desire to stabilise the exchange rate constrains what it can do. That’s a problem for the... 16th September 2022 · 5 mins read
China Economics Weekly Party Congress puts a chill on the rest of the year Early indicators suggest that China’s economy was even weaker in August than it was in July, when the rebound from the Shanghai lockdown prematurely fizzled out. And constraints faced by policymakers... 9th September 2022 · 6 mins read
China Economics Weekly COVID threat, marriage slump The number of Chinese cities tackling virus outbreaks is now almost as high as it was at the peak of the Omicron wave. The hit to activity remains smaller. But with Chengdu entering lockdown and other... 2nd September 2022 · 9 mins read
China Economics Weekly Stimulus continues to underwhelm The recent flurry of policy announcements amounts to less than meets the eye. The rate cuts are too small to revive loan demand and the new commitments for direct credit support total just 0.8% of GDP... 26th August 2022 · 7 mins read
China Economics Weekly Energy crunch threatens to spread nationally Southwest China is currently experiencing power shortages due to a severe drought and heatwave. Officials in Sichuan province and Chongqing municipality have responded by ordering week-long halts to... 19th August 2022 · 5 mins read
China Economics Weekly PBOC turns less dovish on inflation The PBOC’s latest monetary policy report struck a less dovish tone, warning that inflationary pressure may increase in the near-term. We think these concerns are overdone and that inflation is more... 12th August 2022 · 6 mins read
China Economics Weekly Taiwan tensions add impetus to decoupling If China’s military drills off the coast of Taiwan end, as scheduled, on Sunday and there is no further retaliation, this week’s flare-up in tension won’t have a direct economic impact. But it will... 5th August 2022 · 8 mins read
China Economics Weekly GDP target dropped, property rescue plans The Politburo this week quietly abandoned the GDP growth target while promising to support the property sector and ensure that stalled projects are completed. The immediate goal is to boost confidence... 29th July 2022 · 6 mins read
China Economics Weekly Property financing strains, migrant job losses Regulators have called on banks to step up lending to developers. But with banks becoming more cautious about issuing mortgages in the face of mortgage boycotts and local governments tightening... 22nd July 2022 · 4 mins read
China Economics Weekly Housing market jitters, demographic decline Homebuyers across China are banding together to pause mortgage payments in response to construction delays on presold apartments. For now these boycotts are small in scale. But they could become more... 15th July 2022 · 4 mins read
China Economics Weekly Zero COVID, zero growth China’s economy almost certainly contracted last quarter. Perhaps the most interesting thing we’ll learn from the GDP data on Friday is how comfortable the government is with that fact. One other... 8th July 2022 · 10 mins read
China Economics Weekly Banks given more room to lend, housing vouchers Bank lending has been weak recently but that could soon change. Quantitative controls on loans were loosened further in Q2, giving banks room to ramp up lending as credit demand rebounds following... 1st July 2022 · 4 mins read
China Economics Weekly A return to the streets, stimulus still being drip-fed Consumers have returned to the streets, with daily data showing that mobility is now largely back to normal. But it will be a while before they fully reopen their wallets. A lack of substantial policy... 24th June 2022 · 5 mins read
China Economics Weekly GDP target unattainable, shipping disruption China’s statistics office is adept at massaging GDP data. But with many of the indicators that feed into GDP showing year-on-year contractions in April and May, even it won’t be able to deliver... 17th June 2022 · 5 mins read
China Economics Weekly Ant rehabilitation or tech rectification? If the Ant IPO is back on, as some are reporting, this is less likely to signal that the regulatory crackdown is being rolled back than that regulators feel they have successfully brought the formerly... 10th June 2022 · 6 mins read
