Economic contraction deepens in China’s corruption-hit Liaoning as all other provinces mark growth
GDP in debt-ridden rust belt fell 2.2 per cent in first nine months of the year; two other provinces record growth rates below national average
Gross domestic output in China’s debt-ridden rust-belt province of Liaoning fell by 2.2 per cent in the first nine months this year, deepening a 1 per cent drop in output recorded during in the first half of 2016.
Liaoning, which has been plagued by rampant corruption, is the only province in the country to report an absolute fall in economic output over the January to September period – a time when China’s national economy expanded by 6.7 per cent.
Among China’s 31 provinces, municipalities and autonomous regions, Chongqing and Tibet topped the rankings for economic performance with growth rates of 10.7 per cent. Only three provinces reported growth rates below the national average – the other two joining Liaoning were Shanxi, with a 4 per cent growth rate, and Heilongjiang, with 6 per cent growth.
“This is not a surprising result for Liaoning as it is a province that is heavily reliant on energy,” said Julia Wang, a greater China economist at HSBC.
She added that the economic trend in the region was actually getting a little better when all of its industrial figures were taken into consideration.