. | . |
China factory output rises in May but officials guarded by Staff Writers Beijing (AFP) June 14, 2017 Output by Chinese factories and workshops topped expectations in May, but officials warned on Wednesday of lingering "unstable and uncertain factors" at home and abroad. The reading on industrial production, a key engine of growth, comes as Beijing wrestles with huge debt and excess capacity left over from massive government-backed infrastructure spending at the height of the global financial crisis. There have been renewed concerns about the strength of the world's number-two economy following a mixed bag of indicators in recent months and US President Donald Trump's protectionist rhetoric. But forecast-beating trade figures last week and signs of a pick-up in the global outlook have raised hopes that China will be able to sustain its momentum. The International Monetary Fund Wednesday raised its forecast for growth this year to 6.7 percent from a previous estimate of 6.6 percent. The economy maintained "moderate but steady and sound" development in May", National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) spokeswoman Liu Aihua said in a statement. But she warned that "unstable and uncertain factors still exist both domestically and externally". Output rose 6.5 percent from a year earlier, the NBS said, unchanged from the previous month and slightly higher than forecasts of 6.4 percent in a Bloomberg News poll of economists. Fixed-asset investment excluding rural areas -- which measures spending on real estate, roads and bridges -- slowed to 8.6 percent in the first five months of the year from 8.9 percent in January-April. That missed estimates of 8.8 percent. Growth in retail sales -- a key gauge of consumer spending on everything from shoes and clothes to furniture -- was steady compared with April at 10.7 percent and matched forecasts. "Growth momentum remained largely stable in May, but a cooling property market has started to have a negative effect on investment growth," Nomura research analysts Yang Zhao and Wendy Chen said in a note. China's economy has long been driven by debt-fuelled investment in infrastructure, such as bridges, highways and dams as well as real estate. But years of freewheeling credit have left it with huge amounts of debt that some fear could trigger a financial crisis, prompting authorities to rein in risky lending and property acquisitions. The latest data shows Chinese banks issued 1.11 trillion yuan ($160 billion) in new loans in May, more than the expected 1 trillion yuan and slightly above the previous month's 1.1 trillion yuan. Such concerns led Moody's to last month slash the country's credit rating for the first time in almost three decades.
Sydney (AFP) June 13, 2017 Up to 18 staff from Australian billionaire James Packer's Crown Resorts have been charged with promoting gambling in China, eight months after being detained, the company said Tuesday. The marketing employees were seized in raids across China in October, including an executive in charge of luring rich Chinese to Australia, as Beijing cracks down on high-roller gambling promotions. Crown ... read more Related Links Global Trade News
|
|
The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us. |