Latest news with #ChinaEconomy
Washington Post
3 days ago
- Business
- Washington Post
China's factory activity contracts in May, but there are signs of improvement
BEIJING — China's factory activity contracted in May, according to an official survey released on Saturday, although the decline slowed from April as the country reached a deal with the U.S. to slash President Donald Trump's sky-high tariffs . China's purchasing managers index rose from 49.0 in April to 49.5 in May, the National Bureau of Statistics said. PMI is measured on a scale from 0 to 100, where 50 marks the cutoff between expansion and contraction.
Bloomberg
3 days ago
- Business
- Bloomberg
China's Factory Activity Contraction Eases After Trade War Truce
China's factory activity contracted at a slower rate in May after a reprieve in the tariff war with the US unclogged trade flows, even as weak domestic demand continues to weigh on the economy. The official manufacturing purchasing managers' index was 49.5, versus 49 in April, the National Bureau of Statistics said Saturday. That matched the median estimate of economists surveyed by Bloomberg. A reading below 50 indicates contraction.
South China Morning Post
5 days ago
- Business
- South China Morning Post
As US pressure mounts, China's top party journal doubles down on long-haul preparations
Beijing must prepare for the worst-case scenario in its trade talks with Washington, while embracing a narrative of China's economic certainty, the Communist Party's leading theoretical journal said in an article published hours before Washington escalated tech and education curbs on China. 'The US turned away from the negotiating table and immediately intensified its pressure on China's semiconductor industry,' said a commentary posted on the official WeChat account of the Qiushi Journal on Wednesday night. 'This shows that resolving trade issues won't happen overnight.' In the article, titled 'Conveying a Message of Certainty in China's Economy', the journal warned that China could be facing an even more challenging external environment marred by sudden and unexpected events. The piece called on Chinese policymakers to fully account for Washington's tariff policy, including by thoroughly assessing risks and preparing countermeasures. As weak domestic demand, employment pressure, a real estate crisis and US tariffs continue to weigh on China's economy, the commentary said that China must strengthen efforts to shore up core and cutting-edge technologies, achieve breakthroughs in critical bottleneck technologies, and accelerate the application of scientific advances to drive new growth momentum.
Asharq Al-Awsat
6 days ago
- Business
- Asharq Al-Awsat
European Companies Cut Costs, Scale Back Investments in China as its Economy Slows
European companies are cutting costs and scaling back investment plans in China as its economy slows and fierce competition drives down prices, according to an annual survey released Wednesday. Their challenges reflect broader ones faced by a Chinese economy hobbled by a prolonged real estate crisis that has hurt consumer spending. Beijing also faces growing pushback from Europe and the United States over surging exports. 'The picture has deteriorated across many key metrics,' the European Union Chamber of Commerce in China said in the introduction to its Business Confidence Survey 2025. The same forces that are driving up Chinese exports are depressing the business outlook in the Chinese market. Chinese companies, often enticed by government subsidies, have invested so much in targeted industries such as electric vehicles that factory capacity far outpaces demand. The overcapacity has resulted in fierce price wars that cut into profits and a parallel push by companies into overseas markets. In Europe, that has created fears that growing imports from China could undermine its own factories and the workers they employ. The EU slapped tariffs on Chinese EVs last year, saying China had unfairly subsidized electric vehicle production. 'I think there's a clear perception that the benefits of the bilateral trade and investment relationship are not being distributed in an equitable manner,' Jens Eskelund, the president of the EU Chamber in China, told reporters earlier this week. According to The Associated Press, he applauded efforts by China to boost consumer spending but said the government must also take steps to ensure that supply growth doesn't outpace that in demand. The survey results show that the downward pressure on profits increased over the past year and that a fall in business confidence has yet to bottom out, Eskelund said. About 500 member companies responded to the survey between mid-January to mid-February. 'It is just very difficult for everyone right now in an environment of declining margins,' he said.
Globe and Mail
6 days ago
- Business
- Globe and Mail
European companies cut costs, scale back investments in China as its economy slows
BEIJING (AP) — European companies are cutting costs and scaling back investment plans in China as its economy slows and fierce competition drives down prices, according to an annual survey released Wednesday. Their challenges reflect broader ones faced by a Chinese economy hobbled by a prolonged real estate crisis that has hurt consumer spending. Beijing also faces growing pushback from Europe and the United States over surging exports. 'The picture has deteriorated across many key metrics,' the European Union Chamber of Commerce in China said in the introduction to its Business Confidence Survey 2025. The same forces that are driving up Chinese exports are depressing the business outlook in the Chinese market. Chinese companies, often enticed by government subsidies, have invested so much in targeted industries such as electric vehicles that factory capacity far outpaces demand. The overcapacity has resulted in fierce price wars that cut into profits and a parallel push by companies into overseas markets. In Europe, that has created fears that growing imports from China could undermine its own factories and the workers they employ. The EU slapped tariffs on Chinese EVs last year, saying China had unfairly subsidized electric vehicle production. 'I think there's a clear perception that the benefits of the bilateral trade and investment relationship are not being distributed in an equitable manner,' Jens Eskelund, the president of the EU Chamber in China, told reporters earlier this week. He applauded efforts by China to boost consumer spending but said the government must also take steps to ensure that supply growth doesn't outpace that in demand. The survey results show that the downward pressure on profits increased over the past year and that a fall in business confidence has yet to bottom out, Eskelund said. About 500 member companies responded to the survey between mid-January to mid-February. 'It is just very difficult for everyone right now in an environment of declining margins,' he said.
