Mainland China finishes off Q1 with 4.8% economic growth

Q2 will be driven by investment, consumption, and new infrastructure

Mainland China got off to a steady start during Q1 2022, as its GDP went up 4.8 percent from four percent during Q4 2021. 

The growth came despite a slump in the property market and a series of COVID-related lockdowns in March, which disrupted operations and consumption. An example of this is Beijing’s efforts to contain the country’s largest Covid epidemic in two years have had a huge impact on Shanghai, the country’s financial and manufacturing centre. Many enterprises, including manufacturers Volkswagen and Tesla and iPhone assembler Pegatron, were forced to shut down, reported CNN.

Retail sales fell 3.5 percent in March compared to the same month last year, the first drop since July 2020. In March, industrial production increased by five percent, compared to 7.5 percent in the first two months of the year.

National Bureau of Statistics spokesperson Fu Linghui stated that economic development is currently facing various obstacles, according to Xinhua.

COVID outbreaks in March hampered production in several areas, added Fu. The catering, tourism, and transportation sectors, in particular, have been significantly affected.

“But the long-term economic fundamentals remain sound and the continued momentum of economic recovery has not changed,” Fu said, emphasising that the country is confident and capable of overcoming these challenges.

More: Mainland China’s property market to survive slump by easing policies

Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Wang Wenbin shared the same sentiment, as he said during a regular press briefing on Tuesday that China has proven time and again that it will deal with problems effectively “to realise healthy and sustainable economic development and to inject more energy [into] world economic recovery.”

In addition to this, Wang said that the country’s success during Q1 was a demonstration of its continued recovery, unchanged economic fundamentals, as well as its immense potential and vitality.

The Global Times shared that the economy in Q2 will be driven by investment, consumption, and new infrastructure.

The Property Report editors wrote this article. For more information, email: [email protected].