London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Tuesday, May 13, 2025

China's Economic Slowdown Could Have Ripple Effect Across World: Report

China's Economic Slowdown Could Have Ripple Effect Across World: Report

Productivity that determines the long-term growth rate has sunken sharply in the case of China, according to an author.
According to China's National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), the annual GDP growth of the country fell to 3 per cent, much below the 5.5 per cent official target in 2022 and its economic slowdown has the potential to generate ripple effects across the world, reported Financial Post.

The concerns and challenges facing China and the global economy were well articulated by Liu He, the vice-premier of the People's Republic of China, while speaking at the World Economic Forum at Davos 2023.

"Over the past five years, we have experienced all kinds of unexpected events, and witnessed profound changes in the world's political and economic landscape. Therefore, the theme of this year's Annual Meeting, 'Cooperation in a Fragmented World', cannot be more relevant," He said.

"The Covid-19 pandemic punctured China's growth saga. China's GDP growth was also slightly lower than forecasts published by the IMF in October 2022. IMF predictions expected a GDP growth rate of around 4.4 percent.USD 18 trillion in 2021 mainly due to a sharp rise of the dollar against RMB. This is the slowest growth of the Chinese economy since the 2.3 per cent registered in GDP in 1974," reported Financial Post.

Observers were already talking about China falling into the middle-income trap and now, evidence has come to light that the country is finding it hard to keep its miracle of sustained higher growth rates anywhere closer to 10 per cent or more recorded during the late 1980s and the whole of 1990's.

Kim Byung-yeon, author and a professor of economics and head of the Institute for Future Strategy at Seoul National University succinctly argued that "the Chinese economy is slipping into the middle-income-country trap."

According to Kim, productivity that determines the long-term growth rate has sunken sharply in the case of China.

The downward trend has deepened since 2014. China's fast growth over the past 15 years stemmed largely from the infrastructure investment to build factories, housing and roads - and less from structural reform and innovation. Extensive growth led by capital and labor input is not sustainable, reported Financial Post.

The sharp decline in the Chinese GDP growth in 2022 was blamed on a host of factors mainly China shutting itself from the outside world due to the 'Zero Covid' policy. The slow pace was blamed mainly on the strictly 'Zero Covid' policy, leading to periodic lockdowns and the ruling Communist Party's crackdown on big industrial firms besides the lingering real estate crisis.

The most disturbing fact that comes out from the NBS data is that China, the so called 'manufacturing hub' of the world recorded a very feeble growth in industrial output at 3.6 per cent year-on-year in 2022 and even feebler at 1.3 per cent in the month of December. Zhu Hong, a senior NBS statistician, highlighted a rebound in COVID outbreaks and lackluster demand in November that curbed industrial production and placed increasing pressure on Chinese businesses.

According to him, the factors that weighed on slow industrial growth included a squeeze in profits both from anti-virus curbs in big manufacturing hubs such as Guangzhou and Zhengzhou, and from the persistent weight of a protracted property crisis and slowing exports, reported Financial Post.

NBS data in November 22 showed that profits fell for 21 of 41 major industrial sectors, with the ferrous metals smelting and pressing industry suffering the steepest decline, at 94.5 per cent. That compares with a 92.7 per cent fall for the first 10 months.

Another reason for the industrial slowdown is that many Chinese companies are also facing western sanctions including those in the US, especially against the Chinese tech companies which allegedly breach data security and steal patents.

FBI Director Christopher Wray said at the World Economic Forum (WEF) that he was 'deeply concerned' about the Chinese government's artificial intelligence program, asserting that it was "not constrained by the rule of law."
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Poland Tightens Immigration Policy with New Plan to Suspend Asylum Law
Trump says it would be 'stupid' not to accept gift of Qatari plane
8-Year-Old Orders 70,000 Lollipops Using Mother’s Phone, Prompting $4,200 Amazon Bill and Viral Facebook Plea
Quantum Computing Threatens Bitcoin Security
American citizens account for 70% of worldwide pharmaceutical sales despite comprising only 4% of global population
New Details Emerge on Syrian Attacker's Motives in German Festival Stabbing
UK Introduces New Immigration Policy to Reduce Net Migration
Brazil’s President Aims to Strengthen Ties with China Amid US Trade Tensions
Senate Democrats Move to Censure Trump Over Qatar Jet Gift
First White South Africans Resettled in the U.S. Amid Controversy Over Persecution Claims
Hamas Releases Last Living US Hostage from Gaza Amid Ongoing Conflict
India and Pakistan Agreement on Ceasefire Amid Ongoing Tensions
Arsenal Stages Comeback to Draw 2-2 Against Liverpool in Premier League Clash
Trump's Upcoming Visit to Gulf Nations: Investment and Security at the Forefront
Rodrigo Duterte Awaits Trial at The Hague. Next week he might be elected mayor of his hometown
Trump fires director of U.S. Copyright Office, sources say
Retired British police officer arrested over ‘thought crime’ tweet
Cardinal Robert Prevost Elected as Pope Leo XIV, Marking a Historic Papacy
Newark Mayor Ras Baraka Arrested at ICE Facility Amid Congressional Visit
India-Pakistan conflict may be first test for Chinese military tech
Bill Gates Announces Plan to Wind Down Philanthropic Foundation and Disperse Wealth
Historic Papal Conclave Set to Commence in Rome
Huge Copper, Gold, and Silver Discovery in Argentina and Chile — But the Profits Go Abroad
Prince Harry is pleading for reconciliation — but the royals are just as sick of his victimhood as everyone else
The Road to Freedom: She Protested Putin, Escaped House Arrest, and Survived a 2,800-Kilometer Journey
OpenAI's Flip-Flop: No Longer Going Commercial, Back to Nonprofit, After Musk Lawsuit and Backlash
“Trump Supporter” Aims to Bring a MAGA-Style Shift to Romania
First From China: Zhao Xintong Wins the Snooker World Championship
Nvidia Faces Billion-Dollar Losses – Warns: China Is on Its Way to Becoming an AI Superpower
Trump Rules Out Third Term, Names JD Vance and Marco Rubio as Potential Successors
Mexico Says ‘No’ to U.S. Troops: President Sheinbaum Rejects Trump’s Offer to Fight Cartels
Nigel Farage’s Reform UK Storms the Map, Wrecking the Two-Party Monopoly
DOGE: Reimagining Government Operations with AI
Common Sense Returns to Britain's Legal System: UK Supreme Court Declares a Woman Is… a Woman
Beijing Says U.S. Is ‘Reaching Out’ for Tariff Talks Amid Soaring Trade Tensions
U.K. Court Rejects Prince Harry’s Final Appeal Over Police Security
Prince Harry’s Heartfelt Outburst Rocks the Royal Family
Trump Shares AI-Generated Image of Himself as… Pope, Prompting Outrage Reaction
Transgender Swimmer Secures Five Gold Medals at U.S. Masters Championship
Prince Harry: “I Want Reconciliation with My Family”
Germany's Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) party has now been officially labeled “right-wing extremist” by the federal office for the so-called “protection of the constitution.”
Amazon Launches Satellite Internet Service Amidst Competition with SpaceX
Transformative Changes in Women's Wrestling: The Rise of WWE Superstars
The Rush to the White Gold: Global Investment Surge in Natural Hydrogen Exploration
This is a day in Spain without electricity and internet
Reform UK Surprises in British Elections, Challenging Traditional Two-Party System
180-Year-Old Christian University in South Carolina Announces Closure Due to Unmet $6 Million Fundraising Goal
Brazilian Woman Jailed for Fourteen Years for Writing “You Lost, Idiot” on Statue During Protest
Trump Administration Removes National Security Adviser Mike Waltz Amid Signal Chat Controversy
Dutch Politician Eva Vlaardingerbroek Receives Spyware Threat Alert from Apple
×