At the end of January, in a shopping center in Changchun, in the province of Jilin. This region in northeastern China has issued consumer vouchers to boost spending and attract visitors during the Lunar New Year holiday. XU CHANG/Xinhua via AFP
DECRYPTION – Activity rebounded in February, taking advantage of the end of Covid restrictions and the New Year holidays.
February seems to be the month of return to a dynamic economy in China. With Covid restrictions lifted in December, infection waves waning and businesses returning to normal after the New Year holidays, activity is showing a stronger than expected rebound.
In February, the manufacturing industry saw its strongest improvement in more than a decade, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS). The Purchasing Managers’ PMI, which reflects the health of the industrial world, rose to 52.6 last month. This is the highest figure since April 2012. Another indicator measuring activity in services and construction also improved to 56.3. And these two indices have exceeded the expectations of economists.
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Meanwhile, traffic congestion has surged in major cities, subway ridership has returned to pre-pandemic levels, and spending at restaurants and malls has increased. In parallel…
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