Must-Read China Economic News (Dec. 1-Dec. 5)

PMI, China's stance on U.S. semiconductor export control, Record Railway Traffic......

⭐Under the Spotlight

Xi stresses comprehensively advancing high-quality Belt and Road cooperation

Chinese President Xi Jinping stressed the importance of comprehensively advancing high-quality cooperation under the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) while addressing a work meeting on BRI development.

Since the initiative was introduced in 2013, major achievements have been made in Belt and Road cooperation, which have contributed to enhancing China's friendship with participating countries and promoting their economic and social development, Xi said.

While the world has entered a new period of turbulence and change in recent years, he urged efforts to appropriately manage all types of risks and challenges and effectively address the impact of geopolitical conflicts while advancing high-quality Belt and Road cooperation.

China, U.S. on semiconductor

China's Ministry of Commerce (MOC) on Dec. 2 strongly opposed the United States' latest control measures on semiconductor exports, calling the move a typical example of economic coercion and a non-market practice.

The United States is saying one thing and doing another, constantly overstretching the concept of "national security," abusing export control measures, and engaging in unilateral bullying behaviors, the ministry said in a statement.

The semiconductor industry is highly globalized, the statement noted, adding that the U.S.'s abuse of regulatory measures severely hinders normal economic and trade exchanges among countries, undermines market rules and the international economic and trade order, and poses a serious threat to the stability of global industrial and supply chains.

The global semiconductor industry, including U.S. companies, has been severely affected, the statement said, adding that China will take necessary measures to resolutely safeguard its legitimate rights and interests.

Following the statement, Chinese industrial associations voiced strong opposition to the United States' latest control measures on semiconductor exports and urged domestic firms to exercise caution when purchasing U.S. chips.

The China Semiconductor Industry Association (CSIA), the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM), the Internet Society of China (ISC), and the China Association of Communication Enterprises (CACE) released statements on Tuesday, saying they firmly oppose the U.S.'s abuse of export control measures.

The U.S.'s arbitrary control measures against China have caused disruptions in the supply chain and increased operating costs for American companies, affecting the stable supply of U.S. chips and making them no longer secure and reliable, the CSIA said.

"As a result, related Chinese industries have to exercise caution when procuring chips from the United States," the CSIA added.

China-Russia east-route natural gas pipeline fully connected

The China-Russia east-route natural gas pipeline, the pipeline with the largest single-line gas transmission capacity in China, has been fully connected, the pipeline's operator announced.

⭐ Key Economic Indicators

PMI

China's manufacturing sector experienced accelerated expansion in November as a series of incremental policies and existing measures gradually took effect, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

The purchasing managers' index (PMI) for China's manufacturing sector came in at 50.3 in November, up from 50.1 in October, official data showed.

NBS statistician Zhao Qinghe said both supply and demand in the manufacturing sector recovered in November, with the sub-indices for production and new orders rising to 52.4 and 50.8, respectively.

New energy passenger car wholesale

China's new energy passenger vehicle market continued booming in November, with wholesale figures reaching 1.46 million units, industry association data showed.

The figure marks a 51 percent year-on-year increase and a 6 percent jump from the previous month, according to the China Passenger Car Association.

Chinese automakers BYD and Geely led the wholesale figures for new energy passenger vehicles last month, with 504,003 units and 122,453 units, respectively, the association estimated.

Tesla China's wholesale volume reached 78,856 units in November, ranking fifth.

Record railway passenger traffic

China's railway transported over 4 billion passengers during the first 11 months of 2024, hitting a record high, according to China Railway.

As the modern railway network continues to expand, the country's total railway operating mileage has so far exceeded 160,000 km, with high-speed railway surpassing 46,000 km, according to the company.

Over 3,300 railway passenger stations have been built and put into use across the country, including more than 1,300 high-speed railway stations.

The railway network now covers 99 percent of Chinese cities with populations exceeding 200,000, and the high-speed railway network covers 97 percent of cities with populations over 500,000.

⭐ Policy Moves Much Talked About

China to maintain supportive monetary policy in 2025: PBOC governor

The People's Bank of China (PBOC), China's central bank, will maintain a supportive monetary policy stance and policy orientation in 2025, said Governor Pan Gongsheng.

The PBOC will utilize a variety of monetary policy tools and increase countercyclical regulation to maintain reasonable and ample liquidity and reduce the overall financing costs for enterprises and residents, Pan said.

Efforts will be made to effectively leverage structural monetary policy tools to promote the stable development of the real estate market and capital market, Pan added.

The central bank will enhance its monitoring of the money supply at various levels and social liquidity, Pan noted.

⭐ Read More

China-Laos Railway spurs regional economic growth

The China-Laos Railway has handled over 43 million passenger trips and transported 48.3 million tonnes of cargo in the past three years since its inception.

The 1,035-km railway, a flagship project within the framework of the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative, connects China's southwestern city of Kunming with the Laotian capital of Vientiane. It began operation on Dec. 3, 2021.

Over the past three years, the number of monthly passenger trips has surged from over 600,000 at the start of operation to more than 1.6 million today, while the number of cross-border freight trains has increased from two to 18 per day.

The variety of goods transported across the border has also expanded, growing from more than 500 types to over 3,000. The railway has handled over 10.6 million tonnes of imported and exported goods since it began operation, with a total value exceeding 6.11 billion U.S. dollars.

Chinese firms, shoppers join Black Friday frenzy

Transcending distances and national borders, the Black Friday shopping spree has become an extravaganza for both American and Chinese firms and consumers, thanks to the expansive reach of cross-border e-commerce.

Chinese cross-border e-commerce retailers like Shein, PDD's Temu, and TikTok Shop saw strong growth in sales in the seven days through Friday compared to a year earlier, according to Reuters.

The robust sales on these platforms are supported by an efficient cross-border e-commerce ecosystem, which includes manufacturing hubs, streamlined customs processes and expanding logistics networks.

"During the Black Friday season, we have prepared a stock of 300,000 to 400,000 items, and hopefully this major promotion could increase our revenue by 20 percent to 30 percent year on year during the period," Wu Tingxuan, marketing director of a sports goods company in Yiwu, which is known as the "world's supermarket," told Chinese media.

China has some 120,000 cross-border e-commerce export enterprises now. In the first three quarters of 2024, the country's total cross-border e-commerce import and export grew by 11.5 percent year on year in value.

China last month unveiled a policy package to promote trade growth, highlighting efforts to spur cross-border e-commerce development such as advancing the building of overseas smart logistics platforms.