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China economy

China economy
Breaking news and analysis on China’s economy, including its opening up, the US-China trade war, the impact of tariffs and trade talks, growth rates and other key economic data, the Belt and Road Initiative, and Greater Bay Area plan.
Passengers board an Air China flight at an airport in Beijing. China’s major airlines are facing criticism for charging extra seat selection fees. Photo: Getty Images
China consumption

‘A violation’? China’s airlines in the hot seat over hidden extra fees

Seat selection fees are becoming more common in China as airlines grapple with squeezed profit margins, but consumers are pushing back.

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China consumption

Forging ahead: China’s copper heartland vows to build US$28 billion empire

Science

US green tech retreat echoes mistake of China’s Qing dynasty before collapse

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US-China trade war

China-free supply chain? US firm has a rare earth strategy – but can it work?

Backed by Washington, REalloys seeks to break dependence on China but says achieving fully self-sufficient supply chain will take time.

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Rare earths have become one of Beijing’s biggest levers in its trade war with the US, prompting a scramble to diversify supply chains and reduce reliance on China. Photo: Getty Images
China's economic recovery

Beijing digs in for trade ‘struggles’, eyes strategy of growth and resilience

Analysts see leadership’s language after central economic work conference as an admission that trade tensions are expected to endure.

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China GDP

China to keep high fiscal deficit ratio in 2026 to buoy spending plans: analysts

After central economic work conference, observers said ratio is likely to stay at this year’s record 4 per cent in line with ‘targeted’ spending.

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China GDP

China’s central economic work conference: cheat sheet

SCMP Plus annotates the official readout from China’s annual economic policy gathering, where top leaders focused on efforts to boost domestic consumption amid concerns about external trade in 2026.

China’s central economic work conference: cheat sheet
China's economic recovery

China’s 2026 economic road map, Macron tariff threat, November data dump

This week: Chinese leaders prioritise domestic demand amid trade uncertainties at key year-end meeting, Mexico readies Asian tariffs, Macron threatens China levies and Trump greenlights exports of Nvidia H200 chips. Next week: November retail sales, Hainan expands duty-free shopping, China Vanke debt fight, “solar goddess” wedding and more.

China-EU relations

‘Discriminatory’: Chinese firms protest as EU steps up anti-subsidy probes

Chinese business group warns of a ‘targeted and excessive’ campaign as Brussels raids one firm and launches fresh probe against another.

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Going Global

Chinese companies expand globally

Chinese firms are investing in overseas factories and marketing to develop global brands. Domestic price wars are pushing more companies to go global – “chuhai” in Chinese – in search of new growth opportunities.

Chinese companies expand globally
China trade

China’s food-security push to slash soy imports by two-thirds: Goldman Sachs

Beijing is lowering feed content and making related advancements that analysts say could reduce China’s foreign-soybean dependence dramatically within a decade.

Soybeans are loaded into a truck in August so they can be hauled to an elevator in the US state of Illinois. Photo: TNS
China-EU relations

Brussels ramps up China de-risking while France and Germany pull further apart

Raids, probes and new screening rules collide with widening splits between Paris and Berlin over how tough to be on Beijing.

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US-China trade war

‘Maximum pressure’: why China is taking Mexico’s tariff move ‘very seriously’

Beijing sees Mexico’s move as driven by a wider US pressure campaign – and could take retaliatory measures, analysts say.

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US-China trade war

China may buy Nvidia’s H200 – but homegrown chip strategy here to stay: analysts

Despite Trump easing curbs, domestic chipmakers expected to remain central to Beijing’s tech ambitions.

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The chip industry remains a crucial battleground in the US-China tech rivalry, with the high-end market still dominated by American, Japanese and European companies Photo: Shutterstock Images
China's economic recovery

China sets sights on ‘fully tapping’ domestic market potential after policy meet

Following annual central economic work conference, leaders also pledge to stabilise property sector, fight deflation and curb cutthroat competition to counter risks.

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President Xi Jinping delivers a speech at last year’s central economic work conference. Photo: Xinhua
China-EU relations

Beijing urges Dutch government to push for China visit by Nexperia execs

China’s Ministry of Commerce says trip by Dutch chip firm’s management should be made ‘as soon as possible’ amid heated war of words.

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Mainland China

Opinion | How China is cementing its central role as the architect of green tech

Beyond climate leadership and capacity building, China is rewriting its own energy system – and the global energy order.

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China GDP

China can sustain 5 to 6% GDP growth through 2035: economist

Tech, talent and the Chinese system give Beijing unique advantages over other late-developing economies, top economist says.

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Economist Justin Lin Yifu has written China will be able to maintain a 5 to 6 per cent gross domestic product growth rate through 2035. Photo: AFP
China manufacturing

China’s biotech firms may see ‘major breakthroughs’ within a decade. Here’s why

Strong manufacturing base a driving force behind overseas expansion, but industry leaders and analysts say hurdles remain.

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Hong Kong economy

Opinion | How Hong Kong became the trusted bridgehead for China firms going out

Firms eager to escape oversupply and involution at home are looking to leverage Hong Kong’s trusted institutional interface.

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US-China trade war

US seeks ‘constructive’ reset with China as trade tensions ease: Greer

Trade envoy says Washington aims to steady ties after a bruising tariff year, even as disputes over minerals and AI chips persist.

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US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer during an interview at the White House in October. Photo: Reuters
US-China relations

China heads into 2026 with economic strains, uneasy US rivalry: Asia Society

Report says Beijing must juggle control and growth as debt, demographics and US tech tensions shape the year ahead.

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The Great Hall of the People in Beijing. Photo: Reuters
China-Latin America relations

China pledges aid to Latin America, Caribbean with no ‘political conditions’

Third strategy paper of its kind released as Beijing seeks to expand its influence in a region Washington actively courts.

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Banking & finance

China’s sovereign fund reveals it opened London office after Trump win

China Investment Corporation opened its third offshore office in London in December 2024, joining outposts in Hong Kong and New York.

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China's space programme

China launches satellite ‘super factory’ in bid to rival Elon Musk’s Starlink

The facility features a ‘factory-to-launch’ pipeline, expected to make it faster and cheaper to build low Earth orbit constellations.

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China’s first comprehensive factory dedicated to the assembly, testing and reuse of carrier rockets, in south China’s coastal city of Wenchang. Photo: People’s Daily
China inflation

China’s economy can probably ride out storms in 2026

Policymakers meeting in Beijing this week will probably see few reasons for new stimulus measures after China’s economy largely weathered the US trade war.

Photo: SOPA Images/LightRocket
China GDP

IMF raises China growth forecast to 5% for 2025, citing resilience

The assessment is up from October’s forecast, with the fund citing government stimulus and lower tariffs as drivers.

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China consumption

China’s consumer prices rise at fastest pace in nearly 2 years in November

Consumer price index rises by 0.7 per cent for the month, while factory-gate prices continue long decline.

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