As China’s National Day holiday approaches, prices of hairy crabs, one of the most popular seasonal gifts at this time of the year, are down markedly as the first batches are delivered to markets across the country. Industry insiders predict that prices will fall further, citing higher production, shrinking gift-giving demand and weak household spending….
In another show of support for China’s private sector, Beijing has released the details of a speech from President Xi Jinping which included vows the country would guarantee a level playing field for private firms, safeguard entrepreneurs’ lawful rights and interests, and step up efforts to solve their long-standing challenges, including overdue payments. The full…
BEIJING (Reuters) -China’s manufacturing activity shrank for a fourth straight month in July, an official survey showed on Thursday, suggesting a surge in exports ahead of higher U.S. tariffs has started to fade while domestic demand remained sluggish. The purchasing managers’ index (PMI) fell to 49.3 in July versus 49.7 in June, the National Bureau…
(Bloomberg) — Consumption in China grew faster to start the year, helping offset the impact of Donald Trump’s tariffs that are putting pressure on exporters in the world’s largest trading nation. Most Read from Bloomberg Retail sales increased 4% in January-February from the same period a year earlier, the National Bureau of Statistics said Monday,…
Chinese lawmakers and political advisers have urged the country’s education system to make quick changes to cope with challenges brought by artificial intelligence and a rapidly greying population. These suggestions echoed remarks made by President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the “two sessions”, the annual meetings of China’s top legislature and political advisory body….
China’s purchasing managers’ index, a key indicator for manufacturing activity, reached three-month high in February and returned to positive territory as the country ramped up measures to boost the economy. The PMI in February was 50.2 compared with 49.1 in January and 50.1 in December. A reading above 50 indicates expansion, while one below 50…
A sociologist has suggested that people in China’s rural areas are losing faith in higher education to improve their lives, prompting widespread discussion among academics and the media over the Lunar New Year holiday. “A new ‘education is useless’ sentiment has emerged in rural areas,” Huang Lifen, a lecturer at Shaanxi Normal University in the…
(Bloomberg) — China’s consumer inflation accelerated for the first time since August, caused by a burst of household spending around the Lunar New Year holiday even as deflationary pressures persist. Most Read from Bloomberg The consumer price index rose 0.5% in January from a year earlier, the National Bureau of Statistics said Sunday, compared with…
HONG KONG (AP) — Manufacturing slowed in China in January for the first time in four months as workers began leaving assembly lines to travel to their hometowns for Lunar New Year holidays. The National Bureau of Statistics said its purchasing managers index, based on a survey of factory managers, slipped to 49.1 in January…
Resilience has become a hallmark of China’s economic strength in the face of challenges to recent growth targets. It has stood it in good stead once again in 2024, going by yearly economic figures from the National Bureau of Statistics. This sets a positive tone for the final year of the 14th five-year plan and…