IFF Newsletter | China Adds 12.56 Million New Urban Jobs in 2024

TIME：2025-01-24

From the Editor

China's economy reached its 2024 growth target despite a complex domestic and global landscape, providing much-needed certainty and confidence to the global economy, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said on January 17.

The world's second-largest economy expanded 5 percent year on year in 2024, with its gross domestic product (GDP) reaching 134.9084 trillion yuan (about 18.77 trillion U.S. dollars), according to NBS.

After swearing in as the 47th U.S. president, Donald Trump promptly rolled out substantial economic measures. On January 21, he made an announcement regarding a momentous AI infrastructure partnership worth USD500 billion, involving OpenAI, SoftBank, and Oracle.

In a separate Oval Office ceremony after he took office on January 20, Trump proclaimed that a 25% tariff would be imposed on imported goods from Mexico and Canada, with the implementation commencing from February 1.

Newsletter

China News

China's Central Bank Conducts Record USD159 Billion 14-Day Reverse Repo Operations

The People’s Bank of China conducted CNY1.1575 trillion (USD159 billion) 14-day reverse repurchases on January 22 the day after such operations resumed, setting a new record.

The central bank injected CNY198 billion (USD27 billion) of net liquidity into the market through 14-day reverse repo operations today, as CNY959.5 billion were due to expire. The 14-day reverse repurchases rate stayed unchanged at 1.65 percent.

The PBOC’s move aims at offsetting the expiration of seven-day reverse repos and injecting liquidity into the market ahead of the Chinese New Year holiday to prevent significant fluctuations in fund availability.

China Adds 12.56 Million New Urban Jobs in 2024

China created 12.56 million new urban jobs in 2024, hitting the annual target, the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security said on Tuesday.China created 12.56 million new urban jobs in 2024, hitting the annual target, the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security said on January 21.

In 2024, China's surveyed urban unemployment rate stood at 5.1 percent, 0.1 percentage points lower than the previous year, according to the ministry.

The country has set an annual target of creating more than 12 million new urban jobs in 2024 and it also aimed to keep the surveyed urban jobless rate at around 5.5 percent for the year.

China's Non-financial ODI up 10.5 Pct in 2024

China's foreign trade in Chinese yuan terms jumped 5 percent to CNY43.85 trillion last year, setting a new record high, as the world's second-largest economy further consolidated its top position globally in goods trade, according to data released on January 13 by the General Administration of Customs (GAC).

Exports soared 7.1 percent to CNY25.45 trillion in 2024 from the previous year, growing for the eighth consecutive year and exceeding the CNY25 trillion mark for the first time, while imports rose 2.3 percent to CNY18.39 trillion, generating a trade surplus of CNY7.06 trillion (USD962.9 billion), up 22 percent.

China's Internet Users Surpass 1.1 Billion, Powering Digital Economy And Innovation

The number of internet users in China hit 1.1 billion by December 2024, up 16 million from the previous year, according to an industrial report released by the China Internet Network Information Center (CNNIC) on January 17.

This milestone highlights the vast potential of China's digital economy and its key role in driving technological innovation.

The report on the country's internet development revealed that internet penetration in China reached 78.6 percent in 2024, 30 years after the country was fully connected to the global internet.

China now boasts the world's largest internet infrastructure, equipped with advanced technologies, fueling the rapid growth of its digital economy.

By the end of last year, the number of online payment users in China had surpassed 1 billion, while 974 million Chinese people had engaged in online shopping, an increase of 59.5 million people from the end of 2023, according to the report.

China’s GDP Grows at 5% in 2024, Hitting Annual Target

China’s gross domestic product expanded 5 percent last year, meeting the country’s annual economic growth target, following a burst of growth in the final quarter after the government rolled out the heftiest stimulus package since the Covid-19 pandemic, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) announced on January 17.

GDP stood at CNY134.9 trillion (USD18.77 trillion) in 2024, after expanding 5.3 percent in the first quarter, 4.7 percent in the second, 4.6 percent in the third, and 5.4 percent in the fourth, NBS said. Fourth-quarter growth was the strongest in a year and a half.

Value-added industrial output went up 5.8 percent year on year in 2024, accelerating from 4.6 percent growth achieved in 2023. Retail sales, a main gauge of consumption, gained 3.5 percent year on year, while fixed-asset investment expanded 3.2 percent, according to the NBS.

IMF Upgrades Projections For China’s Growth

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) on January 17 slightly upgraded its growth forecast for China in 2025 to 4.6 percent, 0.1 percentage point up from its projection in October 2024, according to an update to its World Economic Outlook (WEO).

"This revision reflects carryover from 2024 and the fiscal package announced in November largely offsetting the negative effect on investment from heightened trade policy uncertainty and property market drag," the IMF said in its release.

The IMF projects China's 2026 growth to mostly remain stable at 4.5 percent, as the effects of trade-policy uncertainty dissipate and the retirement-age increase slows down the decline in the labor supply.This prediction is also 0.4 percentage points higher than before.

Globally, growth is projected at 3.3 percent this year and next, below the historical (2000-19) average of 3.7 percent and broadly unchanged from October.

Newsletter

International News

Trump Returns to White House with Bold Economic Moves

President Donald Trump unveiled significant economic measures immediately after taking office as the 47th U.S. president. On January 21, he announced a landmark USD500 billion AI infrastructure partnership by OpenAI, SoftBank, and Oracle.

The three companies will partner on a new AI infrastructure company named Stargate, building "the physical and virtual infrastructure to power the next generation of AI", including data centers across the nation. The initiative will commence with a USD100 billion investment, expanding to USD500 billion over four years.

In a separate Oval Office ceremony after taking office as president on January 20, Trump declared a 25% tariff on imported goods from Mexico and Canada starting from February 1.

His previously announced broader trade strategy includes imposing tariffs of up to 20% on global imports and a punishing 60% levy on goods from China. Trump also plans to use tariffs in international negotiations, particularly to pressure Denmark over control of Greenland.

Japan's Machinery Orders Rise For 2nd Consecutive Month

Japan's machinery orders from domestic companies, which indicate future trends in corporate capital investment, rose for a second consecutive month in November last year, data from the Cabinet Office showed on January 20.

Machinery orders, excluding ships and electric power due to volatility, came in at 899.6 billion yen (about 5.77 billion U.S. dollars) in November 2024, marking a 3.4-percent increase from the previous month, according to the Cabinet Office.

By sector, orders from the manufacturing sector reached 462.9 billion yen, a 6-percent increase from the previous month, supported by steady demand from the chemical industry for semiconductor-related parts.

Orders from the non-manufacturing sector rose to 453.7 billion yen, up 1.2 percent from the previous month, recovering after a two-month decline.

Canada's CPI Rises 1.8 pct in December

Canada's Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose 1.8 percent on a year-over-year basis in December, down from a 1.9 percent increase in November, Statistics Canada said on January 21.

According to the national statistical agency, Canadians paid less for food purchased from restaurants in December on a year-over-year basis. This was the index's first annual decline.

On a monthly basis, the CPI declined 0.4 percent in December, following a flat month in November, the agency said.

On an annual average basis, the CPI rose 2.4 percent in 2024, down from 3.9 percent in 2023. Excluding energy, the annual average CPI rose 2.6 percent in 2024 compared with 4.5 percent in 2023, said Statistics Canada.

More German Companies Mulling Price Hikes, Says ifo

Germany's price expectations index has risen to its highest level since April 2023, driven by contributions from all economic sectors, according to the economic institute ifo on January 16.

The index climbed to 19.7 points in December, up from 15.8 points in November. The ifo price expectations indicate the percentage of companies planning to raise prices.

Price expectations increased across various sectors in December, including consumer-related service providers, manufacturing, and business-related services. The rise is attributed to persistent supply chain pressures, volatile energy prices, and rising labor costs. These factors have prompted many businesses to plan price hikes to maintain profitability.

Global Tourism Almost Return to Pre-pandemic Level in 2024

International tourist arrivals rose by 11 percent in 2024, with 1.4 billion people traveling internationally, according to the World Tourism Barometer published by UN Tourism on January 21.

The data, which is published on the eve of the FITUR international tourism exhibition in Madrid, means that numbers have recovered to 99 percent of levels seen in 2019 just before the COVID-19 pandemic.

UN Tourism Secretary-General Zurab Pololikashvili said that growth is expected to continue throughout 2025, "driven by strong demand contributing to the socio-economic development of both mature and emerging destinations."

Global Economy Set for 2.7% Growth in 2025-26, Below Pre-Pandemic Pace, World Bank Reports

The global economy is projected to grow at 2.7 percent in 2025-26, remaining 0.4 percentage points below its 2010-2019 average, according to the World Bank's Global Economic Prospects report released on January 17, 2025. The report reveals that global potential growth has declined by approximately one-third since the 2000s.

The 200-plus page flagship study presents a sobering outlook for the world economy as it enters the final years of the first quarter of the 21st century. Despite steady growth figures, the World Bank warns that the current pace is insufficient to drive sustained economic development.

"The global economy appears to be settling at a low growth rate," the report states, highlighting multiple risk factors including policy uncertainty, adverse trade policies, geopolitical tensions, persistent inflation, and climate-related disasters.