high tide
Yet the pace of the improvement in activity matches an increasingly understood understanding of an infection wave that comes on very quickly, disrupts work and consumer demand, then fades just as quickly, factory managers said. to get production back on line and to welcome retailers back. customer.
Eighty percent of people in China had already been infected with COVID-19 before the Lunar New Year festivities began, according to the country’s leading epidemiologist.
Still, strong holiday consumption flattered the January PMI report. Lunar New Year consumption was already reported to be 12.2% higher than last year’s holiday period, while holiday travel inside China increased by 74% for the same period, as people returned home for the first time in three years without COVID-19. Went out to celebrate -19 restrictions. ,
After nearly three years of following a zero-COVID strategy, China relaxed epidemic controls in November and almost completely dropped them in early December.
For the duration of the festival, factories tried to make up lost ground due to the previous year’s disruptions. Kevin Whyte, who sources homeware in China for a major UK retailer, told Reuters his colleague’s factory in China had offered workers bonuses to reduce their holidays over the New Year period.
The cabinet on Saturday said it will promote a recovery in consumption as a key driver of the economy and also aims to help importers.
The IMF also addressed the pace of China’s economic reform on Tuesday. The renewed mobility boost would be short-lived, it said.
The international agency in October revised its outlook for 2023 expansion in GDP to 5.3% from an estimated 4.4%, but warned that growth would drop again to 4.5% in 2024.
The official composite PMI, which combines manufacturing and services, rose to 52.9 from 42.6 in December.
The Caixin Manufacturing PMI of the private sector, which focuses more on small firms and coastal sectors, will be published on February 1. Analysts polled by Reuters expect a December headline reading of 49.0 to 49.5.