Middle East crisis China's growth

China's growth slowed down – now below target

Chinese growth fell to 4.3 percent in the second quarter compared to the same period last year. This is worse than the expected 4.5 percent and the weakest increase since the fourth quarter of 2022.

The Communist Party's goal for 2026 is for growth to be in the range of 4.5–5.0. During the entire first half of the year, growth was 4.7 percent at an annual rate.  

Expert: "To be honest, it's not sustainable"

The slowdown in Chinese growth is likely a result of weak domestic consumption combined with the Iran war, writes CNN. Last night's figures show that China is not immune to the situation in the Middle East.

- There is no domestic demand, it's all about exports. To be honest, it is simply not sustainable, says Alicia Garcia-Herrero, chief economist at financial firm Natixis.

Now the question is how the government will act, and the slowdown is likely to overshadow the decision-making Politburo meeting later in July, writes Bloomberg.

In the second quarter, growth slowed to 4.3 percent at an annual rate, which is below the government's target.