Industrial growth slows and inflation rises in China
Beijing (AsiaNews / Agencies) - China's industrial growth continues to slow. According to July data, after the clamp down on "easy credit" ordered by Beijing, growth fell to 10.3% compared to 11.9% in the first three months of the year. But the most disturbing data comes from inflation, which jumped to 3.3% in July (compared to 2.9% in June, over the 3% threshold set by the government) and investment in machinery, rose - in the first seven months of the year - by 24.9% over the same period last year. Consumer prices also rose by 6% due to the floods of recent weeks.
However, lending by banks fell slightly,(another critical point where the government is trying to cool business) from 603 billion Yuan in June to 532.8 billion (59.9 billion) in July . Instead industrial production has jumped by 13.4% compared to July last year. This has caused an increase in exports, which in July rose by 38.1% reaching a turnover amounting to 145.52 billion dollars.
Imports grew by 22.7% from a year earlier, amounting to 116.79 billion dollars. The pace of growth was +34.1% more than in June. The country's foreign trade amounted to 262.31 billion dollars last month, up 30.8% from a year earlier. But the overall trade surplus for the first seven months of the year was 83.93 billion dollars, down 21.2% over the same period of 2009.
The overall figures, released today by the Chinese Ministry for Finance thus indicate that the domestic economy is cooling, increasing expectation for a change of gear by the Government, which must above all prevent a speculative bubble on the stock market and in real estate. According to Zhu Jianfang of Citic Securities in Beijing, " If they don't make changes, the economy will see a danger of further sliding”.
The United States, whose foreign debt is now in the hands of Beijing, are deeply concerned by the data. Particularly about rising inflation: according to Washington, only the revaluation of the Yuan - currently in the hands of the Central Bank of China - is likely to create a true internal market, which could calm rising prices and counterbalance exports, all directed at the U.S. domestic market.
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