China’s economy grew by 8.1% in 2021 after a sharp slowdown in the second half that is prompting suggestions Beijing needs to shore up slumping growth. In the final three months of 2021, the economy expanded at a 4% annual pace, government data showed.
Growth in the world’s second-largest economy sank to 4% over a year earlier in the final three months of 2021, government data showed Monday. That was down from the previous quarter’s 4.9% and an eye-popping 18.3% in the first three months of 2021.
“Downward pressure on growth will persist in 2022,”Tommy Wu of Oxford Economics said in a report. He said the government is likely to launch “policy support” to keep annual growth above 5%. On Monday, the Chinese central bank cut its rate for medium-term lending to commercial banks to its lowest level since 2020 during the pandemic.
Compared with the previous quarter, the way other major economies are measured, the Chinese economy grew 1.4% in the final three months of 2021. That was up from the previous quarter’s 0.2%. “With supply chains already stretched to capacity, last year’s boost from surging exports can’t be repeated,” said Evans-Pritchard.
One of the country’s biggest developers, Evergrande Group, is struggling to avoid defaulting on $310 billion owed to banks and bondholders.