China's economy rebounds in Q2 after steep slump, consumption and investment still weak

Record ID: 1562652

  • Title: China's economy rebounds in Q2 after steep slump, consumption and investment still weak
  • Date: 16th July 2020
  • Summary: BEIJING, CHINA (JULY 16, 2020) (REUTERS) SPOKESWOMAN FOR CHINA'S NATIONAL BUREAU OF STATISTICS, LIU AIHUA (RIGHT), TAKING SEAT FOR NEWS CONFERENCE JOURNALISTS SEATED (SOUNDBITE) (Mandarin) SPOKESWOMAN FOR CHINA'S NATIONAL BUREAU OF STATISTICS, LIU AIHUA, SAYING: "According to preliminary estimates China's gross domestic product (GDP) was 45.6614 trillion yuan ($6.5 trillion) in the first half of 2020, at comparable prices this is a year-on-year decline of 1.6%. Looking quarter by quarter, the GDP for the first quarter declined by 6.8% year on year and for the second quarter grew by 3.2%." JOURNALISTS SEATED (SOUNDBITE) (Mandarin) SPOKESWOMAN FOR CHINA'S NATIONAL BUREAU OF STATISTICS, LIU AIHUA, SAYING: "Looking at the figures by industry, the value added of the primary industry was 2.6053 trillion yuan ($372.3 billion), a year on year growth of 0.9%, that of the secondary industry was 17.2759 trillion yuan ($2.5 trillion), down by 1.9% and that of the tertiary industry was 25.7802 trillion yuan ($3.7 trillion), down by 1.6 percent. The GDP in the second quarter grew by 11.5% quarter on quarter." JOURNALISTS SEATED (SOUNDBITE) (Mandarin) SPOKESWOMAN FOR CHINA'S NATIONAL BUREAU OF STATISTICS, LIU AIHUA, SAYING: "In the first half of this year, the Chinese economy gradually overcame the adverse effects brought about by the impact of the epidemic and achieved a gradual recovery. But at the same time, it should also be noted that since the main indicators such as GDP, industry, service industry, consumption, and investment in the first half of the year are still in a declining zone, the rebound growth in the second quarter is still a form of recovery growth." NEWS CONFERENCE IN PROGRESS (SOUNDBITE) (Mandarin) SPOKESWOMAN FOR CHINA'S NATIONAL BUREAU OF STATISTICS, LIU AIHUA, SAYING: "In short, looking at these favourable conditions we are confident that the economy will continue to recover in the second half of the year. At the same time, we have the foundations, potential and conditions for this economic recovery to succeed. However, it must also be emphasised that currently the epidemic situation overseas is still spreading rapidly. The global economy and trade, one can say, is struggling to get started again. The recovery of domestic demand is currently subject to certain constraints. The pressure to stabilise enterprises and employment is still relatively large." NEWS CONFERENCE IN PROGRESS
  • Embargoed: 30th July 2020 05:56
  • Keywords: Chinese economy GDP construction consumption employment investment market q2
  • Location: BEIJING, SHANGHAI AND SHENZHEN, GUANGDONG PROVINCE, CHINA
  • City: BEIJING, SHANGHAI AND SHENZHEN, GUANGDONG PROVINCE, CHINA
  • Country: China
  • Topics: Defence,Government/Politics
  • Reuters ID: LVA001CN24NYF
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: China's economy returned to growth in the second-quarter after a deep slump at the start of the year, data showed on Thursday (July 16), but domestic consumption and investment remained weak as the shock from the coronavirus crisis underscored the need for more policy support to bolster the recovery.
    Gross domestic product (GDP) rose 3.2% in the second-quarter from a year earlier, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said at a news conference, faster than the 2.5% forecast by analysts in a Reuters poll, as lockdown measures ended and policymakers ramped up stimulus to combat the pandemic-led downturn.
    The bounce was still the weakest expansion on record, and followed a steep 6.8% slump in the first quarter, the first such contraction since at least 1992 when quarterly GDP records began.
    In the first half of the year, the economy contracted 1.6% from a year earlier, the data showed, underscoring the sweeping impact of the health crisis. On a quarter-on-quarter basis, GDP jumped 11.5% in April-June, the NBS said, compared with expectations for a 9.6% rise and a 10% decline in the previous quarter.
    China's economy, the first in the world to be jolted by the coronavirus pandemic, has been recovering slowly in the past two months, though the bounce from the virus-induced downturn has been uneven.
    Authorities are widely expected to maintain policy support in the second half to bolster the revival, despite concerns over rising debt risks. The government has rolled out a raft of measures, including more fiscal spending, tax relief and cuts in lending rates and banks' reserve requirements to revive the coronavirus-ravaged economy and support employment.
    (Production: Wang Shubing, Martin Pollard, Xihao Jiang)
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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