China’s economic growth to be 2 per cent in 2020 but coronavirus to keep Asia’s growth at lowest since 1967, World Bank warns

Growth in China is expected to come in at 2 per cent this year, boosted by government spending, strong exports and a low rate of new coronavirus infections

The World Bank said the East Asia and the Pacific region this year is projected to grow by only 0.9 per cent, the lowest rate since 1967

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The World Bank said the East Asia and the Pacific region this year is projected to grow by only 0.9 per cent, the lowest rate since 1967. Photo: Reuters

Published: 11:26am, 29 Sep 2020Updated: 11:30am, 29 Sep 2020

The coronavirus pandemic is expected to lead to the slowest growth in more than 50 years in East Asia and the Pacific as well as China, while up to 38 million people are set to be pushed back into poverty, the World Bank said in an economic update on Monday.

The World Bank said the East Asia and the Pacific region this year is projected to grow by only 0.9 per cent, the lowest rate since 1967

Growth in China is expected to come in at 2 per cent this year, boosted by government spending, strong exports and a low rate of new coronavirus infections since March, but held back by slow domestic consumption.

The rest of the East Asia and Pacific region is projected to see a 3.5 per cent contraction, the World Bank said.

These domestic difficulties were compounded by the pandemic-induced global recession, which hit [East Asia and Pacific] economies that rely on trade and tourism hard

World Bank

The pandemic and efforts to contain its spread led to a “significant curtailment” of economic activity, the report said.

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