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☆ China protests could usher in 'more authoritarian' Xi era, analyst says
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-28 | by ( Karen Gilchrist | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Police form a cordon during a protest against Chinas strict zero COVID measures on November 27, 2022 in Beijing, China. "It raises the pressure on Xi Jinping, and I think likely puts him towards a more authoritarian approach to governance in China," Green added. As such, Xi's CCP could clamp down further on public protests, Green noted. That was the case during 2019's pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong, and 1989's Tiananmen Square protests on the Chinese mainland. "In the short term, the Covid policy will only be fine-tuned without moving the needle," Bruce Pang, chief economist and head of research for Greater China at JLL, said Monday.

☆ China might not make major changes to its Covid policy any time soon, despite weekend protests
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-28 | by ( Evelyn Cheng | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

A couple pass necessities over a Covid lockdown barrier in Guangzhou city on Nov. 17, 2022. Future Publishing | Future Publishing | Getty ImagesBEIJING — China won't likely make major changes to its Covid policy in the near future despite this weekend's protests, analysts said. Groups of people in China took to the streets over the weekend to vent their frustration, built up over nearly three years of stringent Covid controls. Separately, the People's Daily ran a front page op-ed Monday on the need to make Covid controls more targeted and effective, while removing those that should be removed. He noted how it was no longer sustainable for China's economy and society to accept continued Covid controls.

☆ Morning Bid: COVID vs RRR
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-24 | by ( Stella Qiu | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SYDNEY, Nov 24 (Reuters) - A look at the day ahead in European and global markets from Stella Qiu:Another central bank pivots. This has aided the risk-on mood in the market, with Asian shares mostly advancing and U.S. dollar broadly weaker. The minutes of the Fed's November policy meeting showed a "substantial majority" of policymakers reckon it will "likely soon be appropriate" to slow the pace of rate hikes. China's COVID infections hit a record high, with Beijing, which has the strictest rules, failing to contain the spreading virus. "In our view, ending zero COVID as soon as possible is the key to raising credit demand and bolstering growth."

☆ China may have 'passed the point of no return' as Covid infections soar
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-23 | by ( Evelyn Cheng | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

BEIJING — Surging Covid infections across mainland China make it harder for the government to achieve zero-Covid without reverting to a harsh lockdown, Macquarie's Chief China Economist Larry Hu said. Larry Hu Chief China economist, Macquarie“China might have already passed the point of no return, as it's unlikely to achieve zero Covid again without another Shanghai-style hard lockdown," Hu said in a report Tuesday. flatten the curve, by tightening the Covid controls for the time being." He said Vietnam's unwinding of its Covid restrictions since fall last year could shed light on the path forward for China. Covid controls tighten in Beijing

☆ China is easing its Covid measures. Here’s how market pros are playing it
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-15 | by ( Zavier Ong | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

China announced a shortening of its quarantine requirements last week, while simplifying travel rules and adjusting its monitoring regime. China has stood firm on its zero-Covid policy even as countries around the world adopt a "live with the virus" approach. Fund manager Brian Arcese believes the market reaction reflects the "underlying fundamentals that earnings will really start to improve." Meanwhile, Arcese, who is a portfolio manager at Foord Asset Management, said the firm has a China exposure of about 20%. It should benefit from the re-opening of China as tourism gradually recovers to pre-Covid levels," he added.

The plan comes as the cash-strapped sector has struggled with defaults and stalled projects, hitting market confidence and weighing on the world's second-largest economy. Policymakers' previous efforts to help financing has done little to bolster the property market. The Hang Seng Mainland Properties Index (.HSMPI) jumped 16.2%, with the share prices of many Chinese property developers posting double-digit gains. The notice "introduced by far the most comprehensive set of support measures for the ailing property market," it said. Some investors remained cautious about the impact of the latest policy, however, as regulators have already made many attempts to revive the property sector and the macro environment remains weak amid the country's COVID restrictions.

☆ China's real estate crisis could be over with new rescue plan. Property stocks are soaring
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-14 | by ( Laura He | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

Hong Kong CNN Business —Chinese authorities are making their biggest effort yet to end a crisis in the country’s vast real estate sector that has weighed heavily on the economy over the past year. Tao Wang, chief China economist at UBS, described the package of measures as a “turning point” for China’s property sector. Along with other policies announced earlier this year, it could inject more than 1 trillion yuan ($142 billion) into real estate, she estimated. In October, sales by the 100 biggest real estate developers contracted 26.5% from a year ago, according to a private survey by China Index Academy, a top real estate research firm. “Beijing’s zero-Covid strategy, despite some latest fine tuning, will continue to weigh on the property sector,” they added.

☆ Covid outbreak worsens in southern Chinese city of Guangzhou
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-10 | by ( Evelyn Cheng | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Guangzhou city in the southern province of Guangdong is the hardest hit in the latest Covid outbreak. BEIJING — Covid infections are surging in the capital of China's export-heavy Guangdong province, raising concerns of another drag on the national economy. Schools in eight of 11 districts in the city of Guangzhou moved classes online for most students as of Thursday. "If Guangzhou repeats what Shanghai did in spring, it will lead to a new round of pessimism on China." State-owned automaker GAC Group said its manufacturers in Guangzhou were operating normally as of Thursday morning.

☆ China's October exports likely cooled further as global demand weakened, Reuters poll shows
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-07 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Exports likely rose 4.3% last month from a year earlier, according to the median forecast of 20 economists in the poll, slowing from a 5.7% pace in September. "The tepid outlook for global supply chains does not bode well for China's exports," said Raymond Yeung, chief China economist at ANZ. "In addition to slowing global demand amid a likely global recession, we note export orders normally sent to China are being diverted to other emerging market economies." Combined with a high base of comparison from last year, Barclays forecast China's exports could fall 2-5% in 2023. The weak trade forecasts implied that China's trade surplus would widen to $95.95 billion from 84.74 billion in September.

☆ China's Oct exports seen cooling further as global demand weakens: Reuters poll
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-04 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

"The tepid outlook for global supply chains does not bode well for China's exports," said Raymond Yeung, chief China economist at ANZ. "In addition to slowing global demand amid a likely global recession, we note export orders normally sent to China are being diverted to other emerging market economies." Combined with a high base of comparison from last year, Barclays forecast China's exports could fall 2-5% in 2023. read moreImports were forecast to have risen just 0.1% from a year earlier, the poll showed, compared with a 0.3% gain in September. The weak trade forecasts implied that China's trade surplus would widen to $95.95 billion from 84.74 billion in September.

☆ China to make substantial changes to COVID policy soon- former govt expert
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-04 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Zeng Guang, a former chief epidemiologist at the Chinese Centre for Disease Control and Prevention who has remained outspoken on China's COVID fight, said that the conditions for China opening up were "accumulating", citing new vaccines and progress the country had made in antiviral drug research. He has previously urged against using excessive measures to fight COVID that risk exhausting people, and in March said that China would look for a route to "flexible and controllable opening up". read moreWhile most of the world has largely done away with virus curbs, China has resolutely stuck to a zero-tolerance approach that reacts to even single cases with lockdowns and mass testing. China reported 3,871 new locally transmitted cases for Thursday, its highest since early May. Reporting by Beijing and Shanghai Newsrooms; Editing by Alex Richardson and Edmund KlamannOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ China to make 'substantial' COVID policy changes soon - ex-govt expert
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-04 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

"The situation is changing now and China's 'dynamic zero' will also undergo major changes. Substantive changes will happen soon," he said, according to the recording of the session, which was titled "China's Exit Strategy from Zero-Covid". Chinese health authorities will hold a press conference on Saturday on COVID-19 prevention, according to a notice that said officials from the the National Bureau of Disease Control and Prevention would attend. LOCKDOWNS AND PROTESTSZeng was part of a top team at China's National Health Commission when the virus started to spread from the central Chinese city of Wuhan to other parts of China in 2020. On Wednesday, the country's National Health Commission said the nation should unwaveringly stick to zero-COVID.

☆ Covid cases, controls spread in China
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-28 | by ( Evelyn Cheng | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Covid cases and controls have increased in China this month. Future Publishing | Future Publishing | Getty ImagesBEIJING — Covid controls in China have tightened in the last two weeks after more cities reported virus outbreaks. watch nowFor Thursday, mainland China reported 214 Covid cases with symptoms and 1,123 without. watch nowHowever, many of the recent case clusters and ensuing Covid controls have occurred in less economically prominent parts of the country, such as areas within Qinghai and Xinjiang in the northwest. The Nomura analysts said they expect China's stringent Covid controls will remain at least until March, "when the political reshuffle will be fully completed and the new leaders fully take over the cabinet."

☆ Investors avoiding China stocks face less pain in bearish year for markets
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-26 | by ( Jorgelina Do Rosario | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON, Oct 26 (Reuters) - Emerging market investors who avoided Chinese shares this year have seen less pain than those with portfolios exposed to the gamut of EM stocks, a trend exacerbated by this week's selloff. The iShares Emerging Markets excluding China ETF (EMXC.O) has fallen by 25% so far this year, its worst performance since its inception in 2017. But it has still beaten the 30% decline in the iShares MSCI Emerging Markets ETF , which includes Chinese equities, in this time, according to Refinitiv data. Foreign investors sold a net 17.9 billion yuan ($2.5 billion) of Chinese onshore shares via Stock Connect on Monday, the biggest outflow since the scheme was launched in 2014. Investors bought a net 2.8 billion yuan ($390 million) of Chinese onshore shares on Tuesday.

☆ Investor fears about Xi's new leadership team 'may be misguided'
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-25 | by ( Evelyn Cheng | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Li Qiang, likely to become the next premier, is pictured here speaking at a major annual financial conference in Shanghai in 2020. Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty ImagesBEIJING — Chinese stocks' plunge on Monday over fears about China's new leadership team "may be misguided," consulting firm Teneo said. Xi's leadership teamThe Politburo standing committee is the highest circle of power in China. Li Xi has led the export-heavy province of Guangdong as party secretary, while Cai Qi held the role for the capital city of Beijing. Mr Li [Qiang] has been widely regarded as a capable pro-market and pro-growth politician.

On a quarterly basis, GDP rose 3.9% versus a revised drop of 2.7% in April-June and an expected 3.5% rise. 1/9 Workers work at a construction site, following the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, in Shanghai, China, October 14, 2022. A Reuters poll forecast China's growth to slow to 3.2% in 2022, far below the official target of around 5.5%, marking one of the worst performances in almost half a century. Retail sales grew 2.5%, missing forecasts for a 3.3% increase and easing from August's 5.4% pace, underlining still fragile domestic demand. "On the policy front, the overall policy will remain supportive," said Hao Zhou, chief economist at Guotai Junan International.

Workers work at a construction site, following the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, in Shanghai, China, October 14, 2022. On a quarterly basis, GDP rose 3.9% in the third quarter, versus a revised drop of 2.7% in April-June and an expected 3.5% rise. The data was originally scheduled for release on Oct. 18 but was delayed amid the key Communist Party Congress last week. New bank lending in China nearly doubled in September from the previous month and far exceeded expectations, helped by central bank efforts to revive the economy. "On the policy front, the overall policy will remain supportive," said Hao Zhou, chief economist at Guotai Junan International.

☆ China's leadership more positive toward tech firms than a year ago, says economist
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-24 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailChina's leadership more positive toward tech firms than a year ago, says economistThe recent party conference in China indicated continuity on the strict regulation of tech companies, with reference to tackling monopolies. But the leadership's overall stance has become more positive amid the current sell-off, according to Duncan Wrigley, chief China economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics.

“My forecast is for a further decline of 1.2% [on a quarterly basis for China’s GDP]. China’s GDP declined 2.6% in the second quarter from the previous one, reversing a 1.4% growth in the January-to-March period. Economists polled by Reuters have expected China’s GDP to expand by 3.4% in the third quarter from a year earlier. Many international organizations, including the IMF and World Bank, have recently downgraded China’s GDP growth forecasts for this year. Bennett expected the third-quarter GDP data to be released after the Party Congress.

☆ China rushes to control new Covid cases across the country
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-11 | by ( Evelyn Cheng | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Workers in Shanghai's Changning district put up fencing on Oct. 7, 2022, around a neighborhood lockdown after reports of new Covid cases. BEIJING — New Covid cases are spiking across mainland China, prompting many local authorities to tighten controls on movement. About 4.8% of China's gross domestic product was negatively affected by Covid controls as of Monday, according to a model from Nomura. On Tuesday, many schools in the central Chinese city of Xi'an cancelled in-person classes for most students, according to a local news outlet. A hashtag about the sudden closures was one of the top-trending items on Weibo, China's Twitter-like social media platform.

☆ China's economy may have done well in August but outlook remains grim
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-19 | by ( Jihye Lee | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Despite an upbeat batch of economic data from China last week, including retail sales and industrial production beating estimates, economists are standing by their pessimism. UBS downgraded its full-year growth forecasts from 3% to 2.7% for 2022 and from 5.4% to 4.6% for 2023. Wang adds that the revised 2023 forecast is still based on a scenario where the property market stabilizes soon and Covid restrictions ease from March onward. "We're not seeing the policy-levers being pulled necessary to facilitate a change," she said of the nation's zero-Covid policy. "Essentially zero-Covid has stomped on human investor confidence in China."

☆ China's factories try to get back to normal as virus persists. But it's far from business as usual
▼ + stars: | 2020-02-14 | by ( Evelyn Cheng | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

The new coronavirus that began to grab national attention in mid-January has killed more than 1,300 people in mainland China. He noted that given unique factors in China's political economic system, many local government officials are making containment of the virus the top priority. Cities with a low return rate include Guangzhou, the capital of China's largest province by exports. This year, authorities have encouraged people to stay put or return to their places of work in phases. There's also the worry that resuming operations at this point could lead to more infections, and further halts to business operations.

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