China’s economy has had a bumpy ride throughout 2022. More than two years into the Covid-19 pandemic, headwinds including the worst outbreaks and a prolonged property sector crisis continued to put a brake on growth.
Faced with faltering demand at home and abroad, China’s GDP has been expanding well below target this year. While policymakers, desperate to boost growth, have launched an array of fiscal and monetary stimulus, the measures have not done much to prop up sagging consumer spending or business confidence. Meanwhile, local governments’ fiscal woes have intensified as their land sales and tax revenues have slumped.
