Better Structure

A recently released report by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) highlighted the achievements of China’s structural reforms, including the continued growth of per-capita income, narrowed ruralurban inequality and streamlined administrative procedures.

The growth of China’s income per capita remains high, said the OECD Technical Report on Progress on Structural Reform Under the G20 Enhanced Structural Reform Agenda.

GDP growth in the country largely followed developments in labor productivity, with the employment ratio being stable at a relatively high level, said the report, as it measured G20 structural reform performance collectively.

“Inequality, as measured by the Gini Index, decreased since 2007, and the gap between rural and urban populations has narrowed,” said the OECD report.

The report observed a steady rise in total spending on research and development in China since the early 2000s alongside a gradual increase in national education expenses.

Meanwhile, it said barriers to market access in the country have eased significantly, as reforms to simplify administrative procedures in the past couple of years have substantially reduced the burden for new entrants and increased overall efficiency. official data showed on June 30.

The country’s manufacturing purchasing managers’ index (PMI) came in at 51.7 in the month, up from 51.2 in May, said the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

A reading above 50 indicates expansion, while a reading below reflects contraction.

Sub-indices for production and new orders came in at 54.4 and 53.1 respectively, up from 53.4 and 52.3 last month, indicating accelerated growth in both supply and demand, according to NBS senior statistician Zhao Qinghe.

External demand also bounced back, with the sub-index for new export orders standing at 52, well above 50.7 in May.

Equipment and hi-tech manufacturing continued robust growth, with the sub-indices coming in at 53 and 53.6 respectively, suggesting improved industrial structure.

While the overall picture remains positive, some traditional industries including oil processing and coking as well as the nonmetal mineral products industry still faced downward pressure, said Zhao.

Also, over 40 percent of surveyed companies reported tight liquidity for the fourth consecutive month, indicating that financial services should do more to support the real economy, Zhao said.

On the other side of the equation, boosted by a strong service sector, China’s non-manufacturing activity expanded at a faster pace in June, adding to signs of a stabilizing economy.

The non-manufacturing PMI came in at 54.9, up from 54.5 in May, and for the first half of 2017, the subindex averaged 54.6, higher than the 53.4 during the same period last year, NBS data showed.

The service sector, which accounted for more than half of the country’s GDP last year, saw robust growth in June, with the sub-index climbing to 53.8 from 53.5 in the previous month.

Thanks to robust online consumption, the sub-indices for courier services and Internet and software information technology services jumped to 72.2 and 61.8 respectively, well above the boom-bust line of 50.

The sub-index for the construction industry reached 61.4 in June, the highest point of this year, as infrastructure investment kept growing rapidly, Zhao said.