China suspends release of third-quarter economic report

The delay that is considered unusual occurs in the week of the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China

Government China The release of economic data for the third quarter of 2022, which is scheduled to be published this Tuesday (October 18, 2022), has been postponed indefinitely. Decision without an official announcement China National Bureau of Statistics No new deadline has been set and it happens in a week Twentieth National Congress of the Communist Party of China (Chinese Communist Party) who should reappoint the president Xi Jinping for a third term in the country on Sunday (23 October 2022).

On the agency’s official website, dates referring to the release of balance sheets such as the GDP (Gross Domestic Product) growth rate from July to September and this month’s industrial production report are shown as “Delayed”. Updated after the Chinese stock exchanges closed. Here is the calendar (Salim – 420 KB, in English).

“I have never come across a case in which a whole series of statistical reports was delayed by nearly half a century of observation.”said chief economist at UBS investment bank, George Magnus The New York Times.

The delay raises doubts about the performance of the Chinese economy with “Covid Zero”who was adopted closures For long periods in the country’s major cities once the first cases of covid-19 were detected.

The financial market’s forecast of 3.3% GDP growth in the third quarter compared to 2021 was lower than the 5.5% forecast by China. Now, the performance is expected to be worse and to follow the stagnation trend he indicated Only 0.4% increase in the second quarter.

The slowdown was also driven by the crisis in the Chinese real estate market, which was hit by a case Chinese Evergrande Group. The collapse of the mega-developer has hit the sector with billions of dollars in debt and stymied the pace of construction across the country.

Congress party

The main political leaders of China They gathered on Sunday (16. October 2022) in Beijing for the 20th Congress of Chinese Communist Party.

The meeting lasts for a week. Held every 5 years since 1949, when the communist leader Mao Zedong He won the civil war and took power.

The 2022 conference should, among other things, Xi Jinping To the position of Secretary-General of the party, and thus to the presidency. It will be his third term as president, which is unprecedented in China.

Xi took power in 2012. In 2018, Presidential term limits suspended, until then 10 years. By current standards, it is able to lead China until 2027.