China's consumer inflation hit an 18-month low and factory-gate price declines sped up in March as demand stayed persistently weak, shoring up the case for policymakers to take more steps to support the uneven economic recovery, Reuters reported. In contrast to surging prices globally, China's retail and producer inflation has remained anaemic as the consumer and industrial sectors struggle to recover from their pandemic hit. Analysts now think consumer inflation could fall short of Beijing's official targets this year.
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China's new bank lending hit an all-time high in the first quarter while broad credit growth quickened as the central bank kept up policy support for the economy after the lifting of stringent COVID-19 curbs, Reuters reported. The world's second-largest economy rebounded from pandemic disruptions driven by consumption and infrastructure. To spur credit growth, the central bank in March cut banks' reserve requirement ratio (RRR) for the first time this year.
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Cash-strapped Shanghai-listed Chinese property developer Sichuan Languang Development is facing delisting risks, after its closing price fell below one yuan per share for two consecutive days and the company warns of insolvency, Nikkei Asia reported. Shares of Sichuan Languang tumbled 7.77% from 1.07 yuan ($0.16) to close at 0.95 yuan on Thursday. On Friday, the company closed further down 2.11% to 0.93 yuan per share. That puts the developer on the cusp of getting booted from the Shanghai Stock Exchange (SSE).
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Some smaller Chinese lenders cut interest rates for time deposits over the weekend, following a similar move by their larger rivals last year, after several lending rate reductions by policy makers started to squeeze their margins, Bloomberg News reported. Rural lenders in provinces including Henan and Hubei lowered deposit rates by as much as 45 basis points on some tenors, according to their announcements. After the adjustment, these lenders will pay an annual 1.9% for one-year deposits, down from the previous 2.25%.
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Growth in sales of China's passenger vehicles was flat in March from a year earlier, industry data showed on Monday, as more price cuts by auto brands and the rollout of incentives by local governments helped to support demand, Reuters reported. Car sales in March were 1.61 million units, the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA) said. In the first three months, sales had fallen 13.4% to 4.33 million units, it added.
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A business tycoon long sought by the government of China, and known for cultivating ties to Trump administration figures including Steve Bannon, was arrested Wednesday in New York on charges that he oversaw a $1 billion fraud conspiracy, the Associated Press reported. Guo Wengui, 54, was accused along with his financier and chief of staff of various crimes, including wire and securities fraud. He was charged in court papers under the name Ho Wan Kwok. U.S.
European planemaker Airbus is negotiating a new round of plane orders with China, coinciding with a visit by French President Emmanuel Macron to the economic superpower later this week, government and industry sources said, Reuters reported. The potential deal for dozens of jets comes amid worsening relations between Washington and Beijing, which have seen China's usually balanced airplane imports tilt towards Airbus in recent years.
A gauge of activity in China’s services sector reached its highest level in more than a decade in March, a sign that Chinese consumers are heading back to stores and restaurants, powering an economic recovery following the end of almost three years of strict COVID-19 controls, the Wall Street Journal reported. The reading represents a promising signal for the global economy, which depends on Chinese consumers to prop up growth this year as their counterparts in the U.S.
Chinese authorities opened a probe into former Bank of China Ltd. Chairman Liu Liange, the most senior banker to become implicated in a broad crackdown on corruption in the financial sector that was unleashed in late 2021, Bloomberg News reported. Liu is suspected of “serious violations of discipline and law,” the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection and the State Supervision Commission said in a one-sentence statement. Liu is among the highest-ranking financial executives to be targeted in President Xi Jinping’s clampdown on the financial sector.
China is seeking a new international order with Beijing as the dominant player, and the European Union must be more assertive in defending its security and economic interests, including possible EU-wide controls on outbound investment, the bloc’s top official said Thursday, the Wall Street Journal reported.
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