Hong Kong’s retail sales rose in January for second straight month, with sales value and volume both hitting the highest since Apr 2022, as easing epidemic control measures boosted consumer spending.
Morgan Stanley expects strong rebound in Chinese economy in the first quarter of 2023, saying that the country’s seasonally adjusted real GDP is expected to grow by about 7.5% from the previous quarter.
China’s Ministry of Commerce held a national teleconference on promoting consumption, which is of great significance and responsibility, the ministry said in a statement on Wednesday.
China’s economy is stabilizing and recovering, with vast development potential in the future, said Chinese Premier Li Keqiang in a phone call with IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva on March 1, according to state broadcaster CCTV.
Online search volume for travel products during the Labor Day holidays has increased by 50.34% in the recent 30 days, according to data from online travel agency Tongcheng Travel.
China’s factory activities expanded at the fastest pace since April 2012 in February, with the official manufacturing Purchasing Manager Index (PMI) rising to 52.6, according to data released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).
China’s new bank loans hit a record high of 4.9 trillion yuan ($720.21 billion) in January, as the authority moved to shore up growth in the world’s second-biggest economy after the relaxation of Covid-19 control measures.
China’s consumer prices grew at a faster pace in January driven by surging spending on services after relaxation of Covid control measures and during the Spring Festival holidays, while factory-gate deflation deepened amid falling commodity prices.
Fitch Ratings raised its forecast for China’s economic growth in 2023 to 5%, from 4.1% previously, reflecting evidence that consumption and activity are recovering faster than initially anticipated after the authorities moved away from their “dynamic zero Covid-19” policy stance in late 2022.
China’s economic growth stabilized at the end of last year and rebounded at the beginning of 2023, said Chinese Premier Li Keqiang chaired a seminar on Tuesday, according to the official Xinhua News Agency.
China’s economy is expected to expand 5.3% in 2023, Nomura said in a note, higher than its previous forecast of 4.8%.
China’s outstanding loans to the real estate sector stood at 53.16 trillion yuan at the end of 2022, rising by 1.5% from a year earlier, slowing by 6.5 percentage points from the previous year.
