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Inside China

This Month

Shoppers on Shanghai’s Nanjing East Road.

China’s retail sales jump as economy shows green shoots

Stronger consumption figures suggest stimulus measures may be filtering through to household spending. But the property sector still faces major problems.

  • Updated
  • Jessica Sier
China’s local governments will receive major support to ease their huge debts.

China keeps its powder dry for US tariff hit

Shares and oil prices fell as investors bet the latest stimulus package would do little to fire up a depressed property market or boost flagging consumer confidence.

  • Updated
  • Jessica Sier
China’s local governments will receive support.

China pledges $2.1trn package to shore up economy

China announced trillions of yuan to support its heavily indebted local governments, as the world’s second-largest economy faces new risks from Donald Trump.

  • Jessica Sier
Chinese shoppers in Beijing.

Consumer giants sceptical of China’s economic recovery

Falling sales for luxury, beauty and beer companies fuel doubts about Beijing’s attempts to boost confidence.

  • Richard Milne, Madeleine Speed and Oliver Ralph

October

Why Xi Jinping changed his mind on China’s fiscal stimulus

After resisting calls to intervene, Beijing has made a sudden U-turn. But will the package be enough to get the economy back on track?

  • Joe Leahy, Edward White and Cheng Leng
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Residential buildings under construction at a China Resources Land Ltd. development in Shanghai

China’s lacklustre growth drags on as stimulus ramps up

The lowest growth figure in 18 months comes as Beijing increases stimulus promises to try to boost China’s sluggish economy.

  • Fran Wang
Customers in the once popular Lan Kwai Fong drinking and eating area in Hong Kong.

Hong Kong slashes tax on alcohol to revive city

The Chinese territory’s chief executive John Lee is trying to turn around the economy amid a fall in tourism and consumption.

  • Kiuyan Wong and Shirley Zhao
Ian Bremmer says Beijing’s best option to stimulate growth in the short term is to give direct fiscal stimulus to consumers.

China’s new stimulus underwhelms as ‘big fat’ numbers missing

Chances of China rolling out a massive stimulus package to boost its faltering economy are fading after Saturday’s announcement failed to reveal details.

  • Jessica Sier
China’s finance minister Lan Fo’an says there’s room for his government to issue more debt.

More vague promises as China scrambles to reignite growth

China will allow local governments to use bonds to buy unsold homes in a bid to prop up the struggling economy.

  • Jessica Sier
Although there will be significant bad debts in China, they appear to have already peaked.

‘Not investible’: The clamour for deeper reforms in China

China has been slow to adjust its economy after COVID-19 and consumers are still hoarding cash, hit by a huge slump in the property market.

  • Jessica Sier
Brokers haven’t given up more stimulus to help reflate China’s economy.

Fresh hopes for China stimulus and private sector reform

Foreign investors say China’s moves to free up private business might reduce unemployment, encourage investment and boost consumer confidence.

  • Jessica Sier
Xi Jinping

China demands schoolteachers hand in their passports

The passport collection drive allows local government officials to control and monitor who can travel abroad, how often and to where.

  • Ryan McMorrow, Nian Liu, Sun Yu and Gloria Li

September

President Xi Jinping needs to step in to save China’s economy from falling into a deflationary spiral.

China’s stimulus no bazooka, but urgency has arrived

China’s efforts to stimulate its economy this week were welcomed and the fight against a slowing economy appears to be on.

  • Jessica Sier
A satellite image from Planet Labs from June appears to show cranes at the Wuchang shipyard.

China’s newest nuclear sub sinks in blow to modernisation

China’s newest nuclear attack submarine has sunk in a shipyard accident, in a setback to the country’s attempts to overtake the US in a naval arms race.

  • Idrees Ali
China has become a world leader in developing hypersonic missiles.

China tests ballistic missile in Pacific in ‘provocative’ move

China fired an intercontinental ballistic missile with a dummy warhead into the Pacific Ocean, its first such major missile launch in years.

  • Alistair Gale
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The travel bloggers ‘sugarcoating’ China’s Uyghur problem

Some influencers claim to be exposing Western media lies about Xinjiang, saying they have not seen human rights abuses taking place.

  • Nicola Smith

Why it’s dangerous to be super rich in China

The number of billionaires has fallen 35 per cent in China, and corporate leaders may be devaluing their wealth, amid fears the state is targeting the rich.

  • Ruchir Sharma

China’s best growth target may be none at all

A move to tone down the country’s emphasis on its 5 per cent annual GDP increase target would have to come from the very top.

  • Daniel Moss
Singapore is one place where Chinese companies can set up entities to skirt protectionist measures in the West.

‘Singapore washing’: China’s new back doors into western markets

Companies such as Shein, ByteDance and BYD are setting up shop in a host of non-aligned third countries, including Singapore, to get around tariffs and barriers.

  • James Kynge, Jude Webber and Christine Murray
Yi Gang.

Top China banker makes rare admission on dire economy

Former People’s Bank of China governor Yi Gang said the government should focus on ending deflation, acknowledging that falling prices are threatening growth.

  • Josh Xiao

Original URL: https://www.afr.com/topic/inside-china-1n87