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China’s industrial output, retail sales in May beat expectations, but ‘difficulties and challenges’ remain

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China’s major economic indicators for May improved marginally and beat market expectations, with signs of good recovery momentum and that the negative effects of the COVID-19 pandemic are being gradually overcome, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

The country’s industrial output increased 0.7 percent year on year in May, picking up from a decline of 2.9 percent in April, NBS data showed on Wednesday. The reading beat Reuters’ expectation of a 0.7-percent drop.

The NBS data also showed that retail sales last month shrank 6.7 percent from a year ago, less than the expected 7.1-percent decline by Reuters. In April, the figure slumped 11.1 percent from a year earlier.

Fixed asset investment rose 6.2 percent year on year in the first five months, compared with growth of 6.8 percent in January-April, according to the NBS. It was above a gain of 6 percent expected by Reuters.

“As expected, growth of activity indicators broadly improved from April,” Lu Ting, chief China economist of Nomura said, attributing the improvement to the easing of COVID-19 control measures in some regions in late May.

China’s exports rebounded and grew at a double-digit pace in May, shattering expectations and adding to signs that China’s economy is recovering from COVID-19 outbreaks as factories restarted and logistics snags eased in Shanghai, customs data showed last week.

The country’s exports rose 16.9 percent in May year on year in dollar terms, accelerating from April’s 3.9-percent increase, according to the General Administration of Customs. It was the fastest growth since January and beat the Reuters forecast of an 8-percent gain.

Dollar-denominated imports also expanded for the first time in three months, rising 4.1 percent in May from a year ago and above the flat growth in April and Reuters’ expectation of a 2-percent increase.

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China’s exports surge to double-digit pace in May, beat forecast

The economy “showed a good momentum of recovery” in May, “with negative effects from COVID-19 pandemic gradually overcome and major indicators improved marginally,” the NBS said in a statement.

“However, we must be aware that the international environment is to be even more complicated and grim, and the domestic economy is still facing difficulties and challenges for recovery,” the agency said.

NBS data showed that the surveyed urban unemployment rate lowered to 5.9 percent in May from 6.1 percent in April, while the unemployment rate for people aged between 25 and 59, the majority of the labor market, stood at 5.1 percent.

“Growth has bottomed, the recovery just started,” Robin Xing, Morgan Stanley’s chief China economist, was quoted as saying by Bloomberg. “It’s still a very incomplete and bumpy recovery, but we have seen the worst.”

The economy is expected to improve further in June and achieve “reasonable” growth in the second quarter if COVID-19 outbreaks are controlled, Fu Linghui, a spokesman for the NBS, told a press conference on Wednesday.

The People’s Bank of China on Wednesday left its key policy interest rates unchanged after lowering benchmark lending rates in May to prop up the economy. The rate on the one-year medium-term lending facility was kept unchanged at 2.85 percent, in line with most forecasts.

Chinese stocks performed best in Asia on Wednesday, with the benchmark CSI 300 Index going up 1.8 percent before the lunch break and climbing further over 2.6 percent as of 2:00 p.m. Beijing Time.

Source: CGTN 

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Asia remains attractive destination for global investment

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BOAO, Hainan, March 27 (Xinhua) — Asia remains a dynamic and attractive destination for global investment, said attendees at a sideline forum of the Boao Forum for Asia (BFA), which convenes its 2024 annual conference in Boao, a resort town in southern China’s Hainan Province.

According to the forum’s Asian Economic Outlook and Integration Progress flagship report, Asian economies demonstrated strong resilience in investment activities in 2022. Foreign direct investment (FDI) flows into Asia-Pacific economies amounted to 809.4 billion U.S. dollars, growing by 6.76 percent over the previous year and accounting for 62 percent of international FDI inflows.

Asia has been a significant beneficiary of FDI, said Shamshad Akhtar, Federal Minister for Finance, Revenue and Economic Affairs of Pakistan, while noting the role of FDI in Asia’s development at the sub-forum with a theme of “Investing the Future of Asia.”

It is important to recognize that Asia, particularly emerging markets, is now on its own development momentum. Asia have become the world’s manufacturing and trade hub supported by foreign capital and investments, she noted.

In 2022, Asian economies attracted a total of 8.8 trillion U.S. dollars in portfolio investment, and China’s stock of portfolio investment surpassed 1 trillion U.S. dollars for the first time, said the report.

Speaking at the forum, Charles Dallara, a member of the Board of Directors of Partners Group, said foreign investments are supporting the global market developments and Asia is really a dynamic and attractive location for investments, especially FDI.

Among Asian economies, China is a very attractive destination for FDI, he said, adding that at the same time, a large amount of capital from China has flowed to other countries and many Chinese businesses and enterprises are investing in the United States, Europe, Japan and Southeast Asia.

Officials and experts also voiced opinions on how to boost investor confidence, improve the investment environment, and enhance investment destinations’ attractiveness in Asia.

Geopolitical influence, rule of law, market potential, industrial system, labor forces, market players, and policy support are factors that affect the inflow of FDI, said Xu Zhibin, deputy administrator of the State Administration of Foreign Exchange.

Governments also play an important role in attracting global capital, said Shimizu Tokiko, assistant governor of the Bank of Japan, adding that Asian countries have resilient economy and governments should have consistent policy arrangements and provide a clear map on its own development for investors.

According to the report, the Asian economy is expected to grow by around 4.5 percent in 2024, surpassing that of 2023, and continue to be the largest contributor to global economic growth.

With a founding purpose to promote economic integration in Asia, the mission of the BFA is to pool positive energy for the development of Asia and the world. The BFA annual conference 2024 runs from March 26 to 29.

Source(s): Xinhua

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Global business leaders: China will continue to be a key contributor to global economic growth

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Global business leaders praised China’s decision to pursue high-quality development and expressed confidence in China’s economic potential, saying China will continue to be a key contributor to global economic growth.

They made the remarks at the China Development Forum 2024 in Beijing on Sunday, during which international scholars, entrepreneurs, government officials and representatives from international organizations discussed key issues concerning the development of China and the world.

In her speech, International Monetary Fund Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said that China is transforming its economy from high rates to high quality of growth and that high-quality development ultimately depends on reforms.

She projects over 3 percent growth for 2024 and the following year for the global economy and urged deep structural reforms for all countries to enhance the conditions for entrepreneurship, innovation and economic performance as the world is facing low productivity, high debt levels and geopolitical tensions.

The IMF head called for China to implement “a comprehensive package of pro-market reforms,” saying China could grow considerably faster with reforms starting with sound macroeconomic fundamentals, and the additional growth would add $3.5 trillion to the Chinese economy.

World Bank President Ajay Banga also mentioned the global challenges, saying they intensified global inequality. He noted that developing countries faced an “unimaginable” gap with 1.1 billion young people expected to enter the workforce in the next decade while the expected jobs being created would only be 325 million. However, he also cautioned that it’s just a prediction, not an actual destiny, adding that China’s “remarkable journey” in the past five decades was a testament to what is possible.

Like Georgieva, Banga also emphasized the importance of reforms. He said that since China’s reform and opening up in 1978, it has lifted 770 million rural residents out of poverty, and due to reform, China fundamentally changed its development trajectory, with more than 8 million jobs created every year for over three decades, sharply reducing global poverty from 44 percent to 9 percent. Once a major World Bank borrower, China is now one of the bank’s biggest donors, Banga added.

The IMF head presented opportunities to boost productivity and improve living standards citing digital and green transformations. She acknowledged China’s leading position in artificial intelligence, saying China’s well-developed digital infrastructure provides a head start.

In terms of advancing the green economy, she described China as a global leader in deploying renewable energy with enormous potential, adding that China was making rapid progress in green mobility.

She also highlighted China’s contributions to assist the IMF in providing affordable long-term financing to low-income countries and states undertaking reforms to reduce risks to prospective balance of payments stability, including those related to climate change and pandemic preparedness, and capacity-development initiatives.

“China’s remarkable development success has delivered tremendous benefits to hundreds of millions of people,” she said and expressed her confidence that China and the world can tackle the current challenges and create a more prosperous future for all through cooperation.

Apple’s Tim Cook also attended Sunday’s forum. The CEO of the U.S.’ largest smartphone empire was in Shanghai to open a new Apple store this week, and he met with China’s Commerce Minister Wang Wentao on Friday.

“I think China is really opening up, and I’m so happy to be here,” Cook told a reporter from CGTN at the forum on Sunday.

He also told the China Media Group that Apple would keep increasing its investment in research and development in China, adding that Apple’s flagship mixed-reality headset, the Vision Pro, would hit shelves in China by the end of this year.

Source(s): CGTN

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BOC announces sale of Drift Thelu Veliga

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Bank of Ceylon (BOC) has announced the sale of leasehold rights of Drift Thelu Veliga Retreat.

According to the bank, the Civil Court has extended BOC the right and permission to sell the Head Lease rights of the property, as per the court’s case number 2096-CVC-2023 on March 14th, 2024.

The resort is owned by Theluveliga Retreat Private Limited, a private limited liability company, which has been mortgaged as a security at the bank to recover the dues of the Term Loan Facility obtained by Castaway Maldives Private Limited.

The bank earlier on March 21st announced that the Head Lease rights of the 5-star property is South Ari Atoll is now available for interested buyers.

BOC further added that the current Headlease period expires on April 2064, which can be extended by the successful bidder for another 49 years according to the Maldives Tourism Act.

According to the bank, the bid reserve price is fixed at MVR 21.14 million.

Interested bidders are invited to submit their proposals to acquire the leasehold rights of the property by furnishing a non-refundable deposit of USD 2,000 to obtain the tender applications and documents from BOC.

To participate in the bid, bidders are required to deposit USD 25,000 at the time of bid application submission. BOC demands the money be deposited by cash, transfer, or DD.

The bank further said that in the event of more than one successful bidder with the same prices, BOC will request the bidders for spot bids which is subjected to a minimum increment of USD 50,000.

The final hour for bid application submission to acquire the leasehold rights is 14:00hrs on April 23rd, 2024.

The 30-villa holiday retreat debuted in October 2015.

Source(s): sun.mv

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