China's economy gathers steam for faster recovery amid pro-growth policies
ThisphototakenonNov.4,2022showsaneveningviewoftheLujiazuiareaineastChina"sShanghai.(Xinhua/WangXiang)
BEIJING,April19(Xinhua)--Chineseeconomyisexpectedtorecoveratafasterpaceaftermakingagoodstartin2023asgrowthmomentumisbuildinguponthegovernment"spro-growthmeasuresrangingfromexpandingdomesticdemandtoattractingforeigninvestment.
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Despiteweakeningglobalgrowthandpersistentlyhighinflationinmajoreconomies,China"sgrossdomesticproduct(GDP)grewby4.5percentyearonyearinthefirstthreemonths,shiningasabrightspotintheeconomiclandscape.
Anincreasingnumberofpositivefactorsarecontributingtotheoverallimprovementineconomicoperation,MengWei,spokespersonfortheNationalDevelopmentandReformCommission,toldapressconferenceonWednesday,addingthatdomesticdemandisgraduallyexpanding,productionandsupplyarerecoveringatafasterpace,andpublicexpectationsarenotablyimproving.
Lookingahead,growthinthesecondquarterislikelytobesignificantlyfasterthaninthefirstquarter,saidFuLinghui,spokespersonwiththeNationalBureauofStatistics(NBS).
Chinawillintroducepragmaticandeffectivemeasuresinaduecoursetobolsterthegrowthmomentumandpromotesustainedeconomicrecovery,accordingtoMeng.
Thehigher-than-expectedgrowthrateinthefirstquarterwaspartlydrivenbyareboundinconsumption,aspeopleflockedtoshoppingmallsandrestaurants.
NBSdatashowedthatChina"sretailsalesgainedmomentuminQ1,up5.8percentyearonyear.Finalconsumptioncontributed66.6percenttooverallGDPgrowthinQ1.
Chinaisdrawinguprelateddocumentswithafocusonstabilizingbulkconsumption,improvingservicesconsumption,andexpandingconsumptioninruralareastobolstertherecoverytrend,Mengsaid.
Tostimulateautoconsumption,thecountrywillexpeditethebuildingofbatterychargingfacilitiesandparkingfacilitiesincities,andpromotenewenergyvehiclesinruralareas.
Aspartofeffortstopromotehigh-levelopeningup,Chinawillappropriatelyshortenthenegativelistforforeigninvestment,Mengadded.
Sheindicatedthatthegovernmentiscommittedtoadoptingmoremeasurestoactivelyleverageforeigninvestment,addingthatpoliciesdesignedtochannelmoreforeigninvestmenttowardsadvancedmanufacturing,high-endtechnologies,andmodernservices,aswellastothecentral,western,andnortheasternregionsofthecountry,willbefullyexecuted.
Effortswillalsobemadetoencouragemoreprivatecapitaltoparticipateintheconstructionofmajornationalprojects,andstepupcreditsupportforprivateinvestmentprojectsinaccordancewithmarketprinciples,Mengsaid.
Chineseauthorities,includingthePeople"sBankofChina,havealsotakenstepstostimulategrowth.InastatementreleasedlastFriday,thecentralbanksaiditwillmakeeveryefforttostabilizegrowth,employmentandprices,andexpanddomesticdemand.
Prioritywillbegiventoinfrastructureconstruction,andsupportwillbeprovidedforkeysectorsandweaklinksoftheeconomy,suchasinclusivefinance,greendevelopmentandsci-techinnovation,thecentralbankadded.
Onthefiscalfront,governmentspendingrose6.8percentyearonyeartohit6.79trillionyuan(about987.9billionU.S.dollars)inthefirstquarter,accordingtotheMinistryofFinance.
Sincethebeginningofthisyear,thecentralgovernmenthasmaintainedarelativelyhighexpenditureintensityandcontinuedtoimprovetheeffectivenessofthefiscalpolicy,saidtheministry,addingthatitwillmakesolideffortstocuttaxesandfeessothatpolicydividendscanbenefitbusinessentitiesmore.
Astheeconomicrecoverygainstraction,investmentbanksandinternationalorganizationshaveupgradedChina"sgrowthforecastsforthisyear.
JPMorganraisedits2023growthoutlookto6.4percent,upfromapreviousforecastof6percent,sayingthatthelatestquarterlyreportpointstofurthergrowthahead.
Citiraiseditsforecastto6.1percentfromitspreviousforecastof5.7percent,statingthattheChineseeconomyiswellontrackforitspost-COVIDrecoveryledbyconsumptionandservices.
TheInternationalMonetaryFundsaidinitslatestreportonTuesdaythatChinawillbethetopcontributortoglobalgrowthoverthenextfiveyears,withitssharesettobedoublethatoftheUnitedStates.
