Latest news with #ZhiweiZhang
Malay Mail
7 days ago
- Business
- Malay Mail
China's May consumer spending jumps 6.4pc, but industrial slowdown and property woes persist
BEIJING, June 16 — Retail sales in China grew at a faster rate than expected last month, official data showed Monday, a positive sign for the world's second-largest economy during its grinding trade war with the United States. The key gauge of consumer demand grew 6.4 per cent year-on-year in May, according to data published by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS). The figure beat the 4.9 per cent growth forecast in a Bloomberg survey of economists and was also sharply up from April's 5.1 per cent increase. However, the NBS also said industrial production grew a below-par 5.8 per cent. Zhiwei Zhang, president and chief economist at Pinpoint Asset Management, wrote in a note that the retail sales figures 'came as a surprise', but warned the economic outlook for the rest of the year was uncertain. The NBS said the economy 'maintained stability' last month as authorities 'stepped up the implementation of more proactive and effective macro policies'. But it added that 'there are still many unstable and uncertain external factors, and the internal momentum for expanding domestic demand needs to be further strengthened'. Beijing has struggled to sustain strong growth since the pandemic, grappling with deep-seated problems at home including a persistent slump in domestic consumption and a debt crisis in the property sector. Commercial property prices in a representative group of 70 cities fell month-on-month in May, reflecting continued consumer caution, the NBS said. The surveyed unemployment rate – another notable figure as millions of young people struggle to find suitable work – edged down to five per cent in May from 5.1 per cent the previous month, the bureau said. China is targeting economic growth of around five per cent this year. But the picture is also complicated by trade tensions with Washington that erupted in a gruelling tit-for-tat tariff war after US President Donald Trump took office in January. The two sides have since agreed a pause on retaliatory levies but have not yet announced a lasting deal. Trade delegations met in London this month for a second round of high-stakes talks, with Trump saying the superpowers reached an agreement that would preserve a truce. Li Chenggang, the head of the Chinese team, said communication with the US had been 'very professional', but did not say whether an accord had been reached. — AFP
Yahoo
7 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
China factory output slumps but consumption offers bright spot
China's factory output grew slower than expected last month as trade war pressures bit, official data showed Monday, while a bump in a key gauge of domestic consumption offered a rare bright spot for the economy. The United States and China this month agreed to a temporary truce in a blistering trade war that saw tariffs hiked to eye-watering levels and upended global supply chains. And the impact of the standoff was highlighted Monday as a report showed industrial production grew just 5.8 percent last month, below the 6.0 percent predicted in a survey of economists by Bloomberg. That was below a forecast-beating 6.1 percent in April, according to the data published by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS). "Weaker external demand was partly to blame," Zichun Huang, China Economist at Capital Economics said in note. "Despite the tariff truce, the contraction in industrial sales for export appears to have deepened last month." However, retail sales -- a key gauge of consumer demand -- grew 6.4 percent year-on-year in May, according to the NBS, topping the 4.9 percent forecast in the Bloomberg survey and sharply up from April's 5.1 percent increase. Zhiwei Zhang, president and chief economist at Pinpoint Asset Management, wrote in a note that the retail sales figures "came as a surprise" -- pointing to the possible impact of a government trade-in programme for consumer goods. The NBS said the world's number two economy "maintained stability" last month as authorities "stepped up the implementation of more proactive and effective macro policies". But it added that "there are still many unstable and uncertain external factors, and the internal momentum for expanding domestic demand needs to be further strengthened". Beijing has struggled to sustain strong growth since the pandemic, grappling with deep-seated problems at home including a persistent slump in domestic consumption and a debt crisis in the property sector. Commercial property prices in a representative group of 70 cities fell month-on-month in May, reflecting continued consumer caution, the NBS said. The surveyed unemployment rate -- another closely watched figure as millions of young people struggle to find suitable work -- edged down to five percent in May from 5.1 percent the previous month, the bureau said. China is targeting economic growth of around five percent this year. But the picture has been complicated by trade tensions with Washington that erupted in a gruelling tit-for-tat tariff war after US President Donald Trump took office in January. The two sides have since agreed a pause on retaliatory levies but have not yet announced a lasting deal. isk-mjw/oho/dan Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Free Malaysia Today
7 days ago
- Business
- Free Malaysia Today
China retail sales beat forecast despite trade war tensions
The key gauge of consumer demand grew 6.4% year-on-year in May, according to the National Bureau of Statistics. (AFP pic) BEIJING : Retail sales in China grew at a faster rate than expected last month, official data showed today, a positive sign for the world's second-largest economy during its grinding trade war with the US. The key gauge of consumer demand grew 6.4% year-on-year in May, according to data published by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS). The figure beat the 4.9% growth forecast in a Bloomberg survey of economists and was also sharply up from April's 5.1% increase. However, the NBS also said industrial production grew a below-par 5.8%. Zhiwei Zhang, president and chief economist at Pinpoint Asset Management, wrote in a note that the retail sales figures 'came as a surprise', but warned the economic outlook for the rest of the year was uncertain. The NBS said the economy 'maintained stability' last month as authorities 'stepped up the implementation of more proactive and effective macro policies'. However, it added that 'there are still many unstable and uncertain external factors, and the internal momentum for expanding domestic demand needs to be further strengthened'. Beijing has struggled to sustain strong growth since the pandemic, grappling with deep-seated problems at home including a persistent slump in domestic consumption and a debt crisis in the property sector. 'Commercial property prices in a representative group of 70 cities fell month-on-month in May, reflecting continued consumer caution,' the NBS said. 'The surveyed unemployment rate – another notable figure as millions of young people struggle to find suitable work – edged down to 5% in May from 5.1% the previous month,' the bureau said. China is targeting economic growth of around 5% this year. However, the picture is also complicated by trade tensions with Washington that erupted in a gruelling tit-for-tat tariff war after US President Donald Trump took office in January. The two sides have since agreed a pause on retaliatory levies but have not yet announced a lasting deal. Trade delegations met in London this month for a second round of high-stakes talks, with Trump saying the superpowers reached an agreement that would preserve a truce. Li Chenggang, the head of the Chinese team, said communication with the US had been 'very professional', but did not say whether an accord had been reached.
New Straits Times
7 days ago
- Business
- New Straits Times
China retail sales beat forecast despite trade war tensions
BEIJING: Retail sales in China grew at a faster rate than expected last month, official data showed on Monday, a positive sign for the world's second-largest economy during its grinding trade war with the United States. The key gauge of consumer demand grew 6.40 per cent year-on-year in May, according to data published by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS). The figure beat the 4.90 per cent growth forecast in a Bloomberg survey of economists and was also sharply up from April's 5.10 per cent increase. However, the NBS also said industrial production grew a below-par 5.80 per cent. Zhiwei Zhang, president and chief economist at Pinpoint Asset Management, wrote in a note that the retail sales figures "came as a surprise", but warned the economic outlook for the rest of the year was uncertain. The NBS said the economy "maintained stability" last month as authorities "stepped up the implementation of more proactive and effective macro policies". But it added that "there are still many unstable and uncertain external factors, and the internal momentum for expanding domestic demand needs to be further strengthened". Beijing has struggled to sustain strong growth since the pandemic, grappling with deep-seated problems at home including a persistent slump in domestic consumption and a debt crisis in the property sector. Commercial property prices in a representative group of 70 cities fell month-on-month in May, reflecting continued consumer caution, the NBS said. The surveyed unemployment rate — another notable figure as millions of young people struggle to find suitable work — edged down to five per cent in May from 5.10 per cent the previous month, the bureau said. China is targeting economic growth of around five per cent this year. But the picture is also complicated by trade tensions with Washington that erupted in a gruelling tit-for-tat tariff war after US President Donald Trump took office in January. The two sides have since agreed a pause on retaliatory levies but have not yet announced a lasting deal. Trade delegations met in London this month for a second round of high-stakes talks, with Trump saying the superpowers reached an agreement that would preserve a truce. Li Chenggang, the head of the Chinese team, said communication with the US had been "very professional", but did not say whether an accord had been reached.
Yahoo
09-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
China's exports slow as trade war takes toll
Chinese exports grew at a slower pace than expected in May, according to official data on Monday, as shipments to the United States tumbled after Donald Trump's tariff blitz triggered global trade turmoil. Imports fell more dramatically than expected, the figures showed, with weak domestic consumption in the world's number two economy highlighted by data earlier in the day revealing another month of falling prices. The 4.8 percent year-on-year increase in overseas shipments last month was slower than the 8.1 percent growth recorded in April, also falling short of the six percent jump that was forecast in a survey of economists by Bloomberg. The reading included a 12.7 percent plunge in exports to the United States compared with April, when Trump unveiled his eye-watering tariffs on China. Imports from the United States tanked 17.9 percent after Beijing imposed tit-for-tat measures. Exports tumbled by a third year-on-year in May. In contrast, the data showed shipments to Vietnam increased from the previous month. Those to other Southeast Asian countries including Malaysia, Thailand, Singapore and Indonesia all declined slightly after soaring in April, the figures indicated. "The trade war between China and the US led to sharply lower exports to the US, but the damage was offset by stronger exports to other countries," Zhiwei Zhang, resident and Chief Economist at Pinpoint Asset Management, said in a note. "The trade outlook remains highly uncertain at this stage," he said, pointing to the impact of "frontloading" when overseas buyers increase shipments ahead of potentially higher tariffs. "We think export growth will slow further by year-end," wrote Zichun Huang, China Economist at Capital Economics, citing tariffs that are "likely to remain elevated". - Spending slump - Monday's data added to concerns about the Chinese economy, with a report from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showing the consumer price index -- a key measure of inflation -- dropped 0.1 percent year-on-year in May. The reading, which was slightly better than expected but marks the fourth straight month of falling prices, comes as Beijing struggles to boost domestic consumption that has been sluggish since the end of the pandemic. The failure of leaders to kickstart demand threatens their official growth targets and complicates their ability to shield the economy from Trump's tariff blitz. While deflation suggests the cost of goods is falling, it poses a threat to the broader economy as consumers tend to postpone purchases under such conditions in the hope of further reductions. A lack of demand can then force companies to cut production, freeze hiring or lay off workers, while potentially also having to discount existing stock -- dampening profitability even as costs remain the same. Factory gate prices also dropped in May, the NBS said on Monday, deepening a slump that has now lasted more than two years. The producer price index decline of 3.3 percent -- accelerating from a 2.7 percent drop in April -- was faster than the 3.2 percent estimated in the Bloomberg survey. The "data doesn't reflect much from the (central bank's) monetary easing package last month", wrote Lynn Song, Chief Economist for Greater China at ING, referring to a series of key rate cuts introduced recently in an attempt to get consumers spending. "It's hard to envision a significant uptick, though, as domestic consumer sentiment remains soft and tariffs could cause further deflationary pressure," Song wrote. - Fresh talks - Representatives from China and the United States are expected to meet in London on Monday for another round of high-stakes trade talks that markets hope will ease tensions between the economic superpowers. A key issue in the negotiations will be Beijing's shipments of rare earths -- crucial to a range of goods including electric vehicle batteries and which have been a bone of contention for some time. Customs figures on Monday showed Chinese exports of rare earth minerals rose last month to 5,865 tonnes from 4,785 tonnes in April. However, last month's figure still represented a decline from May last year, when China exported 6,217 tonnes of rare earths. The London talks will be the second set of formal negotiations between the two since Trump launched his global trade blitz on April 2. They were announced after a phone call last week between Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping. China and the United States paused sky-high tariffs after the first round in Geneva in mid-May but failed to reach a sweeping trade deal. pfc/oho/pbt Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
