Since the beginning of the year, China has seen economic progress both in terms of quantity and quality. Data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showed on April 16 that China’s GDP recorded a year-on-year growth of 5.3 percent in the first quarter (Q1) of 2024. The national economy got off to a good start, with accumulating positive factors laying a solid foundation for full-year growth target [of around 5 percent], NBS Deputy Commissioner Sheng Laiyun told a press conference on the same day in Beijing.
Shortly after China released its Q1 statistics, Singapore consumer bank DBS announced it would revise up its 2024 GDP growth forecast for China from 4.5 percent to 5 percent.
China’s Q1 expansion was driven by robust services sector growth and export demand. Additionally, domestic infrastructure and manufacturing investment accelerated thanks to proactive state initiatives, counteracting pressures from slowing property investment, according to DBS.
International institutions such as Goldman Sachs, Citibank, and the Asian Development Bank have also all revised their projections for China’s economic growth upward for this year, votes of confidence in China’s economic outlook.
While the numbers are certainly encouraging, Sheng emphasized the need to not only focus on changes in overall economic indicators but also to pay closer
