China’s GDP grows 5.3% in Q1, beating expectations Need 3 years to toe IMF’s reforms, says Pak Minister
Good start, but property market still struggling
BEIJING: China’s economy grew at 5.3 per cent in the first quarter, making a stronger-than-expected start to the year even as the downturn of its property market continued while the domestic demand remained subdued.
The GDP grew 5.3 per cent year on year to 29.63 trillion yuan (about $ 4.17 trillion) in the first three months of 2024, data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showed on Tuesday.
The pace accelerated from 5.2 per cent overall GDP growth for 2023, appearing on course to meet the target set by the government at around five per cent. On a quarterly basis, the economy expanded by 1.6 per cent in the first three months of this year, according to the NBS.
“China’s high-quality development has made new achievements in the first quarter. The national economy has sustained recovery momentum and got off to a good start,” Sheng Laiyun, Deputy Head of the NBS said.
Sheng mentioned positive factors during this period, such as rising production demand, stable employment and prices, and growing market confidence.
“These positive factors driving economic recovery are accumulating and strengthening, laying a good foundation for full-year growth,” he said.
WASHINGTON: Cash-strapped Pakistan would need two or three years to implement structural reforms prescribed by the IMF, Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb has said, warning that the country would be looking for another bailout programme if it fails to go through these measures.
Aurangzeb said that Pakistan doesn’t need too many policy prescriptions; it just needs to implement those policies, Geo News reported. The finance minister is currently in the US to attend the spring meetings of the World Bank Group and discuss a new loan package with the IMF.
Aurangzeb said that Pakistan was looking for a larger and longer programme from the IMF because “we need two to three years for structural reforms.” He forewarned that if Pakistan which has entered 24 programmes with the IMF doesn’t go through the structural reforms, the country would still be looking for another programme, the report said.