Data from China over the weekend showed an exit from deflation:
Last week we also had better trade data from China:
Great trade data AND then an exit from deflation all in one week. Which, as it happens, coincides with China's annual parliament:
- China's National People's Congress (NPC)
What a marvellous turn of events in China. Indeed, China's Global Times, the tabloid mouthpiece for the Chinese Communist Party noted as much also:
- The three-month continuous rise in consumption prices month-on-month confirms a signal of the recovery of domestic demand across the Chinese economy that was reflected in China's increase in imports in the first two months of 2024. The country's overall economic performance in the first quarter may exceed expectations, according to one expert.
- The strong year-on-year and month-on-month price increases in February suggest that consumption in China has indeed returned to normal levels, even after excluding seasonal factors which include the traditional consumption surge during the Spring Festival holidays, Tian Yun, an economist based in Beijing, told the Global Times on Saturday.
Cynics might think the data has been manipulated in some way while the NPC is on.
Let me know in the comments if you are wondering the same thing as me.
