China signals no adequate stimulus is reaching, while Covid controls stay

Aug 01, 2022: -On Thursday, China’s top leaders signaled that no vital stimulus for economic growth was on the way and downplayed the need to achieve the “5.5%” GDP target.

According to Thursday’s condition media readout of the leaders’ meeting, authorities said they would stabilize employment and prices in the year’s second half. Chinese President Xi Jinping headed the economic discussion, held regularly with the leadership of China, understood as the Politburo.

That high-level word of stabilizing prices shows there won’t be any additional expansionary policies, Wang Jun, a director at the China Chief Economist Forum, says in a phone interview. He notes that high inflation overseas and expected China would encounter additional significant inflationary pressure in the coming months.

One of the most significant stimulus announcements came in late May when China’s State Council, the top executive body of the country, announced 33 economic support measures which range from tax refunds to infrastructure investment.

While Wang expected to use credit and local government bonding to support the economy, he said authorities would not likely “force” 5.5% growth.

China’s gross domestic product increased by just 2.5% in the first half of the year from a year ago, after the economy declined in the second quarter. The worst Covid-19 outbreak since 2020 locked down the metropolis of Shanghai, while related restrictions in other parts of China hit business activity.