China: It was China weakest performance since the global financial crisis, when growth tumbled to 6.1 percent in the first quarter of 2009, according to Asahi Shimbun. Much of China decline has been self-imposed as communist leaders try to steer the economy to more sustainable growth based on domestic consumption instead of trade and investment. Growth declined to 7 percent from the previous quarter 7.3 percent, official data showed April 15. But an unexpectedly sharp downturn over the past year has fueled fears of job losses and social tensions. Economists note China still depends on government-led spending on construction to drive growth. "We still are relying on a traditional growth engine, and that is declining," said a spokesman for the National Bureau of Statistics, Sheng Laiyun, at a news conference. "We are in transition between the old and new growth models." On April 14, the country top economic official, Premier Li Keqiang, warned at a meeting with businesspeople and economists that China faces "downward pressure," according to a report on the Cabinet website. Beijing has cut interest rates twice since November and launched targeted measures to help exporters and other industries.
(news.financializer.com). As
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Tagged under China, domestic consumption topics.