Latest news with #ZichunHuang
Kuwait Times
2 days ago
- Business
- Kuwait Times
China's factory activity hits lowest since 2022
QINGZHOU: Employees work on a tractor assembly line at a factory in Qingzhou, in eastern China's Shandong province in this photo.- AFP BEIJING: Chinese factory activity hit a more than two-year low in May, a closely watched survey showed Tuesday, as a detente in Beijing's trade war with Washington was offset by ongoing domestic problems in the world's number two economy. China and the United States agreed last month to temporarily halt most tit-for-tat tariffs on each other's goods, providing some much-needed relief to global markets. But the standoff has still piled further pressure on China's economy, which already faced a long-running real-estate crisis, sluggish consumption and high levels of local government debt. The Caixin Purchasing Managers' Index, independently calculated by S&P Global and Chinese business outlet Caixin, fell to 48.3 in May, well below the 50-point threshold separating expansion from contraction. The figure was the lowest since September 2022 and well below the 50.4 seen in April. It was also sharply off the 50.7 forecast in a Bloomberg survey of economists. 'The surprisingly sharp fall... means that the survey data now point to a loss of economic momentum last month,' said Zichun Huang, China economist at Capital Economics. 'Domestic headwinds (are) more than offsetting the boost from the US-China trade truce,' she said. Wang Zhe, senior economist at Caixin Insight Group, said the slowdown was linked to 'sluggish external demand, which fell for a second straight month'. The country should target effective measures to boost domestic demand by improving household incomes, Wang added. Official data from the National Bureau of Statistics on Saturday showed a less severe contraction in the factory sector last month. While the NBS figure focuses on large state-owned industrial groups, the Caixin index primarily surveys small and medium-sized enterprises. But in a positive sign, a business sentiment survey by S&P Global and Caixin showed a slight improvement in May after a record drop in April, thanks to expectations of stronger foreign trade through the rest of the year. — AFP
Malay Mail
3 days ago
- Business
- Malay Mail
Trade truce no lifeline as China's factory activity slumps to lowest since 2022
BEIJING, June 3 — Chinese factory activity hit a more than two-year low in May, a closely watched survey showed Tuesday, as a detente in Beijing's trade war with Washington was offset by ongoing domestic problems in the world's number two economy. China and the United States agreed last month to temporarily halt most tit-for-tat tariffs on each other's goods, providing some much-needed relief to global markets. But the standoff has still piled further pressure on China's economy, which already faced a long-running real-estate crisis, sluggish consumption and high levels of local government debt. The Caixin Purchasing Managers' Index, independently calculated by S&P Global and Chinese business outlet Caixin, fell to 48.3 in May, well below the 50-point threshold separating expansion from contraction. The figure was the lowest since September 2022 and well below the 50.4 seen in April. It was also sharply off the 50.7 forecast in a Bloomberg survey of economists. 'The surprisingly sharp fall... means that the survey data now point to a loss of economic momentum last month,' said Zichun Huang, China economist at Capital Economics. 'Domestic headwinds (are) more than offsetting the boost from the US-China trade truce,' she said. Wang Zhe, senior economist at Caixin Insight Group, said the slowdown was linked to 'sluggish external demand, which fell for a second straight month'. The country should target effective measures to boost domestic demand by improving household incomes, Wang added. Official data from the National Bureau of Statistics on Saturday showed a less severe contraction in the factory sector last month. While the NBS figure focuses on large state-owned industrial groups, the Caixin index primarily surveys small and medium-sized enterprises. But in a positive sign, a business sentiment survey by S&P Global and Caixin showed a slight improvement in May after a record drop in April, thanks to expectations of stronger foreign trade through the rest of the year. — AFP
Free Malaysia Today
3 days ago
- Business
- Free Malaysia Today
China factory activity hits lowest since 2022
China and the US agreed to temporarily halt most tit-for-tat tariffs on each other's goods, providing some much-needed relief to global markets. (AP pic) BEIJING : Chinese factory activity hit a more than two-year low in May, a closely watched survey showed today, as a detente in Beijing's trade war with Washington was offset by ongoing domestic problems in the world's number two economy. China and the US agreed last month to temporarily halt most tit-for-tat tariffs on each other's goods, providing some much-needed relief to global markets. However, the standoff has still piled further pressure on China's economy, which already faced a long-running real-estate crisis, sluggish consumption and high levels of local government debt. The Caixin purchasing managers' index, independently calculated by S&P Global and Chinese business outlet Caixin, fell to 48.3 in May, well below the 50-point threshold separating expansion from contraction. The figure was the lowest since September 2022 and well below the 50.4 seen in April. It was also sharply off the 50.7 forecast in a Bloomberg survey of economists. 'The surprisingly sharp fall… means that the survey data now point to a loss of economic momentum last month,' said Zichun Huang, China economist at Capital Economics. 'Domestic headwinds (are) more than offsetting the boost from the US-China trade truce,' she said. Wang Zhe, senior economist at Caixin Insight Group, said the slowdown was linked to 'sluggish external demand, which fell for a second straight month'. The country should target effective measures to boost domestic demand by improving household incomes, Wang added. Official data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) on Saturday showed a less severe contraction in the factory sector last month. While the NBS figure focuses on large state-owned industrial groups, the Caixin index primarily surveys small and medium-sized enterprises. However, in a positive sign, a business sentiment survey by S&P Global and Caixin showed a slight improvement in May after a record drop in April, thanks to expectations of stronger foreign trade through the rest of the year.
20-05-2025
- Business
World shares advance after China cuts interest rates to boost economy
World shares rallied Tuesday after China cut key interest rates to help fend off an economic malaise worsened by trade friction with Washington. Shares in China's CATL, the world's largest maker of electric batteries, jumped 16.4% in its Hong Kong trading debut after it raised about $4.6 billion in the world's largest IPO this year. Its shares traded in Shenzhen, mainland China's smaller share market after Shanghai, gained 1.2% after dipping earlier in the day. The Reserve Bank of Australia reduced its benchmark interest rate by a quarter percentage for a second time this year, to 3.85%, judging inflation to be within its target range. The earlier reduction, in February, was Australia's first rate cut since October 2020. The future for the S&P 500 lost 0.3% while that for the Dow Jones Industrial Average was 0.1% lower. In European trading, Germany's DAX edged 0.2% higher to 23,988.93, while the CAC 40 in Paris climbed 0.1% to 7,892.94. Britain's FTSE 100 rose 0.5% to 8,745.62. China's central bank made its first cut to its loan prime rates in seven months in a move welcomed by investors eager for more stimulus as the world's second largest economy feels the pinch of Trump's higher tariffs. The People's Bank of China cut the one-year loan prime rate, the reference rate for pricing all new loans and outstanding floating rate loans, to 3.00% from 3.1%. It cut the 5-year loan prime rate to 3.5% from 3.6%. With China's chief concern being deflation due to slack demand rather than inflation, economists have been expecting such a move. Data reported Monday showed the economy under pressure from Trump's trade war, with retail sales and factory output slowing and property investment continuing to fall. Tuesday's cuts probably won't be the last this year, Zichun Huang of Capital Economics said in a report. 'But modest rate cuts alone are unlikely to meaningfully boost loan demand or wider economic activity,' Huang said. Hong Kong's Hang Seng gained 1.5% to 23,681.48, while the Shanghai Composite index advanced 0.4% to 3,380.48. In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 inched up 0.1% to 37,529.49, while Australia's S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.6% to 8,343.30. South Korea's Kospi lost 0.1% to 2,601.80, while the Taiex in Taiwan was nearly unchanged. India's Sensex lost 0.8%. On Monday, U.S. stocks, bonds and the value of the U.S. dollar drifted through a quiet day after Moody's Ratings became the last of the three major credit-rating agencies to say the U.S. federal government no longer deserves a top-tier 'Aaa' rating. The S&P 500 picked up 0.1% and the Dow industrials added 0.3%. The Nasdaq composite was nearly unchanged. The downgrade by Moody's coincided with a debate in Washington over potential cuts in tax rates that could siphon away more revenue. If the government has to pay more in interest to borrow cash, that could cause interest rates to rise for U.S. households and businesses, too, in turn slowing the economy. The downgrade adds to a long list of concerns on investors' minds, chief among them President Donald Trump's trade war. It has forced investors globally to question whether the U.S. bond market and the U.S. dollar still deserve their reputations as some of the safest places to park cash during a crisis. The U.S. economy has held up so far and hopes are high that Trump will eventually relent on his tariffs after striking trade deals with other countries. But big companies have been warning about uncertainty over the future. Walmart, for example, said recently that it will likely have to raise prices because of tariffs. That caused Trump over the weekend to criticize Walmart and demand it and China 'eat the tariffs.' Walmart's stock slipped 0.1% Monday. In other trading early Tuesday, U.S. benchmark crude oil lost 4 cents to $62.10 per barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, shed 11 cents to $65.43 per barrel. The U.S. dollar fell to 144.44 Japanese yen from 144.86 yen. The euro climbed to $1.1261 from $1.1244.
Time of India
20-05-2025
- Business
- Time of India
World shares advance after China cuts interest rates to boost economy
World shares advance after China cuts interest rates to boost economy (AP) World shares rallied Tuesday after China cut key interest rates to help fend off an economic malaise worsened by trade friction with Washington. Shares in China's CATL, the world's largest maker of electric batteries, jumped 16.4% in its Hong Kong trading debut after it raised about $4.6 billion in the world's largest IPO this year. Its shares traded in Shenzhen, mainland China's smaller share market after Shanghai, gained 1.2% after dipping earlier in the day. The Reserve Bank of Australia reduced its benchmark interest rate by a quarter percentage for a second time this year, to 3.85%, judging inflation to be within its target range. The earlier reduction, in February, was Australia's first rate cut since October 2020. The future for the S&P 500 lost 0.3% while that for the Dow Jones Industrial Average was 0.1% lower. In European trading, Germany's DAX edged 0.2% higher to 23,988.93, while the CAC 40 in Paris climbed 0.1% to 7,892.94. Britain's FTSE 100 rose 0.5% to 8,745.62. China's central bank made its first cut to its loan prime rates in seven months in a move welcomed by investors eager for more stimulus as the world's second largest economy feels the pinch of Trump's higher tariffs. The People's Bank of China cut the one-year loan prime rate, the reference rate for pricing all new loans and outstanding floating rate loans, to 3.00% from 3.1%. It cut the 5-year loan prime rate to 3.5% from 3.6%. With China's chief concern being deflation due to slack demand rather than inflation, economists have been expecting such a move. Data reported Monday showed the economy under pressure from Trump's trade war, with retail sales and factory output slowing and property investment continuing to fall. Tuesday's cuts probably won't be the last this year, Zichun Huang of Capital Economics said in a report. "But modest rate cuts alone are unlikely to meaningfully boost loan demand or wider economic activity," Huang said. Hong Kong's Hang Seng gained 1.5% to 23,681.48, while the Shanghai Composite index advanced 0.4% to 3,380.48. In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 inched up 0.1% to 37,529.49, while Australia's S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.6% to 8,343.30. South Korea's Kospi lost 0.1% to 2,601.80, while the Taiex in Taiwan was nearly unchanged. India's Sensex lost 0.8%. On Monday, U.S. stocks, bonds and the value of the U.S. dollar drifted through a quiet day after Moody's Ratings became the last of the three major credit-rating agencies to say the U.S. federal government no longer deserves a top-tier "Aaa" rating. The S&P 500 picked up 0.1% and the Dow industrials added 0.3%. The Nasdaq composite was nearly unchanged. The downgrade by Moody's coincided with a debate in Washington over potential cuts in tax rates that could siphon away more revenue. If the government has to pay more in interest to borrow cash, that could cause interest rates to rise for U.S. households and businesses, too, in turn slowing the economy. The downgrade adds to a long list of concerns on investors' minds, chief among them President Donald Trump's trade war. It has forced investors globally to question whether the U.S. bond market and the U.S. dollar still deserve their reputations as some of the safest places to park cash during a crisis. The U.S. economy has held up so far and hopes are high that Trump will eventually relent on his tariffs after striking trade deals with other countries. But big companies have been warning about uncertainty over the future. Walmart, for example, said recently that it will likely have to raise prices because of tariffs. That caused Trump over the weekend to criticize Walmart and demand it and China "eat the tariffs." Walmart's stock slipped 0.1% Monday. In other trading early Tuesday, U.S. benchmark crude oil lost 4 cents to $62.10 per barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, shed 11 cents to $65.43 per barrel. The U.S. dollar fell to 144.44 Japanese yen from 144.86 yen. The euro climbed to $1.1261 from $1.1244.
