SwedCham China Insights for the Week of December 25, 2023 – January 2, 2024

Top news of the week:

China’s top legislature reviews multiple draft laws, revisions at standing committee session

December 25, 2023

The Standing Committee of the 14th National People’s Congress, China’s top legislature, started its seventh session on December 25 to review multiple draft laws and law revisions.

China releases action plan to foster world-leading business environment in Greater Bay Area

December 26, 2023

Beijing has drawn up a blueprint designed to foster a world-leading business environment in its Greater Bay Area of Guangdong, Hong Kong SAR and Macau SAR. The three-year action plan is released by the National Development and Reform Commission. In the plan, the commission pledged to further ease restrictions for investors and attract multinational companies and international organisations to establish their headquarters in the technology and innovation hub.

U.S. extends tariff exclusions on some Chinese categories until May 31, 2024

December 27, 2023

The office of U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai on December 26 announced a further extension of China “Section 301” tariff exclusions on 352 Chinese imports and 77 COVID-19-related categories till May 31, 2024.

Sinopec forecasts China's coal consumption to peak around 2025

December 28, 2023

China Petrochemical Corp, or Sinopec, expects coal consumption to peak around 2025 at 4.37 billion metric tons, the state energy group said in an outlook. Non-fossil energy supply, led by solar and wind, will likely exceed the equivalence of 3 billion metric tons of standard coal by 2045 to become the dominant energy source for more than half of primary energy consumption, according to Sinopec.

Central conference on work relating to foreign affairs held in Beijing

December 29, 2023

The central conference on work relating to foreign affairs was held in Beijing from December 27 to December 28. President Xi Jinping reviewed the achievements and experience of major-country diplomacy with Chinese characteristics in the new era, elaborated on the international environment and historical mission of China's external work in the new journey, and made comprehensive plans for China's external work at present and in the future.

Chinese Premier chairs State Council executive meeting

December 30, 2023

Premier Li Qiang presided over a State Council executive meeting, which mulled measures on further advancing a new type of urbanization that puts people first and decided to approve two nuclear power projects. It also discussed a draft amendment of China’s statistics law, deliberated and adopted the draft regulations on implementing the country’s archives law and the draft revision of the State Council’s provisions on the standard for declaration of concentration of business operators.

China releases guideline on upgrading traditional manufacturing industries

December 31, 2023

By 2027, China’s traditional manufacturing industries should achieve notable progress in their high-end, intelligent, green, and integrated development, consolidating their position and competitiveness in the global industrial division of labor and cooperation, according to the guideline jointly released by eight authorities, including the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology.

Five countries formally join BRICS

January 1, 2024

The BRICS memberships of Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, Iran and Ethiopia officially took effect on January 1.

China’s manufacturing PMI drops to 49 in December 2023

January 2, 2024

China’s manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) stood at 49 in December 2023, down from 49.4 in November 2023, data from National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showed.

Insight of the week:

Beijing’s top economic planner has sent out an upbeat message about China’s growth prospects in an assessment of a key economic plan.

The world’s second-largest economy has advanced as expected in most aspects outlined in its 14th five-year plan covering economic and social development for 2021-25, according to an interim assessment report from the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC). Despite several challenges, 16 of the 20 major goals included in the plan are within expectation or better than anticipated, NDRC head Zheng Shanjie said in his report to the country’s top legislature on December 26. However, energy consumption, carbon emission, air quality and childcare service goals, which are high on the agenda for China’s green transition and efforts to counter demographic challenges, are lagging, the report added.

Going forward, challenges include technological chokepoints, an imperfect long-term mechanism to expand residents’ consumption, a high level of pollutant and carbon emissions, and the coexistence of an inadequate supply of public services and the partial misallocation of resources, Zheng said.

To meet its targets, China will take a series of measures such as expanding domestic demand, ensuring accelerated recovery and the steady growth of the economy, and deepening market-oriented reform and institutional opening-up. The country will also prevent and resolve risks in key areas…“co-ordinate the resolution of risks in real estate, local government debt, and small and medium-sized financial institutions.” Zheng also said China needs to step up its development of high technology to overcome a blockade on technology exports imposed by some countries.