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March 20 – China's state-owned enterprises reported ¥7.5 trillion in revenues and ¥211.97 billion in gross profits in the first two months of 2012, up 9.9% and down 11.5% respectively from the same period a year ago. The sluggish steel, real estate and machinery industries were cited for the decline in earnings.
March 19 – China will likely become the world's largest importer in the years to come, Commerce Minister Chen Deming said at a forum on the nation's development, citing 16% to 18% growth in retail sales over recent years, which were twice those of overall economic expansion.
March 15 – China's per capita GDP would have been 10 times higher if it had significantly weakened or even broken monopolistic operations, argued Li Yiheng, the nation's chief representative to the IMF, calling for deeper reforms in the finance, construction, transport, education, healthcare and telecommunications industries. "An average US worker's productivity and salary were 10 times and 9 times respectively those of an average Chinese worker's over the past decade, and poor productivity stemming from monopolies has resulted in low wages, Li said.
March 15 – China's foreign direct investment fell for the fourth month in a row in February following a sharp decline in contributions from the debt-ridden EU, the Ministry of Commerce said. FDI dropped 0.9% from a year earlier to $7.73 billion last month, and was down 0.6% to $17.72 billion in the first two months of 2012.
March 14 – China's currency may be near an equilibrium level and greater movement in the exchange rate will be allowed in the future, premier Wen Jiabao said during a press conference at the National People's Congress, adding that the government will step up reform of its exchange rate regime and allow wider, two-way fluctuation.
March 14 – The government's revised-down growth target of 7.5% this year – compared with around 8% over the past decade – aims to improve the quality of economic output and reduce energy costs, premier Wen Jiabao said during a press conference at the National People's Congress. China's gross domestic product grew 9.2% in 2011 and is expected to grow 7% annually on average between 2011 and 2015.
March 13 – China had over 8.4 million privately-owned businesses as of the end of 2011, according to a report by Hexun.com and Data.com. They accounted for 87.4% of the total number of companies in the country and were responsible for over 60% of economic output.
March 12 – China, which has been running trade surpluses over much of the past 10 years, saw its trade deficit climb to a record $31.48 billion in February after imports, boosted by commodities, jumped 39.6% to $145.95 billion while exports were up 18.4% to $114.47 billion, customs figures show. In the first two months, the nation's bilateral trade grew 7.3% year on year to $533.03 billion, where exports were up 6.9% to $264.39 billion and imports were up 7.7% to $268.64 billion.
March 9 – Fixed asset investment in China rose 21.5% year on year to ¥2.12 trillion in the first two months of 2012; the rate was 2.3 percentage points slower than in the same period a year ago, the National Bureau of Statistics said. Fixed asset investment in the primary sector was up 43.9% to ¥30.4 billion; fixed asset investment in the secondary sector was up 24.9% to ¥893.9 billion; fixed asset investment in the tertiary sector was up 18.5% to ¥1,194.6 billion.
March 6 – China's growth in fixed asset investment will slow to 16% this year compared with 23.8% in 2011, predicted Zhang Ping, director of the National Development and Reform Commission.
March 5 – China's non-manufacturing industries shrank for the first time in three months in February after the non-manufacturing purchasing managers index declined to 48.4, down from 52.9 a month earlier, according to joint figures from the National Bureau of Statistics and the China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing. On the contrary, the same gauge from HSBC hit a record high of 53.9 since October.
February 28 – A report by the World Bank and a prominent Chinese think tank recommends sweeping changes in the Chinese economy, including reducing the power of state-owned enterprises (SOEs) and breaking up monopolies, the Wall Street Journal reported. Other recommended changes include raising bank deposit rates and increasing dividends paid by SOEs as a way to boost government revenue for social spending.
February 24 – China will need a total investment of ¥48 trillion in infrastructure construction between 2011 and 2015 as the nation's urbanization rate is expected to rise from 47.5% to 51.5% during that five-year period, according to Liu Yong, a senior official at the State Development Bank.
February 24 – China recorded $186.7 billion of net foreign capital inflow in 2011, equivalent to half of the increase in its foreign exchange reserves, according to the State Administration of Foreign Exchange.
February 21 – Central government-owned enterprises, the largest of China's state-owned enterprises, posted ¥20.2 trillion in revenues and ¥917.3 billion in net profits in 2011, up 20% and 6.4% respectively from the year before, the State-Owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission said. COEs had ¥28 trillion in total assets and ¥10.7 trillion in net assets as of the end of 2011, up 14.9% and 11.4% respectively from a year earlier.
February 20 – China signed $38.6 billion worth of bilateral trade deals with the US as vice president Xi Jinping wrapped up a state visit to the country, China's Ministry of Commerce said. The deals involved energy, agricultural, telecommunications and computer products. China-US trade value amounted to $446.7 billion in 2011 and is estimated by Xi to exceed $500 billion this year.
February 16 – Foreign direct investment in China fell 0.3% year on year to just under $10 billion in January, marking the third month of decline in a row as Europe's debt crisis cut corporate spending, figures from the Ministry of Commerce show.
February 16 – China's economic growth was 50.1% driven by foreign trade in 2011, down significantly from 67% from five years earlier, and this percentage is expected to drop further in the years to come, China Customs said.
February 15 – China's tax receipts rose 22.6% to ¥8.97 trillion in 2011, with 18.7% from corporate taxes, the Ministry of Finance said. The total tax revenue was equivalent to 19% of the nation's economic output.
February 14 – China's logistical expenses grew 18.5% to ¥8.4 trillion in 2011, according to joint figures from the National Development and Reform Commission, the National Bureau of Statistics and the China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing. The amount was equivalent to 17.8% of the nation's gross domestic product, a relatively high level.
$1 = ¥6.31
@2011 China Economy @ The China Perspective.
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