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| China's economy meets official growth target | Photo: AFP |
China has achieved its growth target of 5 percent in 2024. China achieved its growth target last year largely on the back of manufacturing and export growth. The country's growth rate increased in the last quarter as Chinese exporters began exporting earlier after Trump was elected.
The Financial Times reported that China's economy rebounded strongly in the final quarter of the year. The country's growth rate in the final quarter was 5.4 percent. As a result, although the growth rate slowed in the third quarter, it largely recovered in the fourth quarter.
China's National Bureau of Statistics said the Chinese government has tried to boost the economy with several stimulus packages. These incentives have been largely effective. Economists had expected China to grow by 4.9 percent in 2024 the growth rate has exceeded that forecast.
However, China's growth rate last year was 5.2 percent. 5 percent growth is the lowest for China since 1990, excluding the years of COVID-19 in between.
China's domestic consumption has declined slightly. This situation has arisen due to several years of slow growth. However, the Chinese government has been able to overcome this situation to a large extent by increasing production and exports.
But Frederick Newman, HSBC's chief Asia economist, told the Financial Times that the figures temporarily masked some of China's internal weaknesses. He said exporters had previously exported more on the fear that Trump would raise tariffs on Chinese goods after he came to power. Exports would be hit if Trump then raised tariffs.
In addition, China's overall trade surplus is set to reach a record $1 trillion in 2024, largely due to export growth. But Newman believes that the only weakness in China's economy now is consumer confidence. This means that more stimulus will be needed to boost consumer confidence.
In addition, Morgan Stanley analysts say that China's growth in the fourth quarter is short-lived. It may decline from the second quarter of this year.
China's retail sales grew by 3.5 percent in 2024, despite a prolonged period of economic instability. During this period, the country's industrial production grew by 5.8 percent.
China's growth rate in 2014 was 7.4 percent; in 2015, 7; in 2016, 6.8; in 2017, 6.9; in 2018, 6.7, and in 2019, 6 percent. In the year of Covid, China's growth rate suddenly dropped to 2 percent. Building on that low base, China's growth rate in 2021 was 8.34 percent. In 2022, it dropped again to 3 percent. Then, in 2023, it rose again to 5.2 percent.