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BBC HomepageSkip to contentAccessibility HelpYour accountLiveNotificationsHomeNewsSportWeatheriPlayerSoundsBitesizeMore menuMore menuSearch BBCHomeNewsSportWeatheriPlayerSoundsBitesizeCBBCCBeebiesFoodClose menuBBC NewsMenuHomeIsrael-Gaza warCost of LivingWar in UkraineClimateUKWorldBusinessPoliticsCultureMoreTechScienceHealthFamily & EducationIn PicturesNewsbeatBBC VerifyDisabilityBusinessMarket DataEconomyYour MoneyCompaniesTechnology of BusinessCEO SecretsArtificial IntelligenceNational People’s Congress: China sets ambitious 2024 economic targetPublished35 minutes agoShareclose panelShare pageCopy linkAbout sharingImage source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Premier Li Qiang spoke at the opening of the annual National People’s Congress (NPC) on TuesdayBy Peter HoskinsBusiness reporterChina has set an ambitious growth target of around 5% for this year, as it announced a series of measures aimed at boosting its flagging economy.Premier Li Qiang made the announcement at the opening of the annual National People’s Congress (NPC) on Tuesday.Mr Li acknowledged that China’s economic performance had faced “difficulties”, adding that many of these had “yet to be resolved”. It comes as China struggles to reinvigorate its once-booming economy.”Risks and potential dangers in real estate, local government debt, and small and medium financial institutions were acute in some areas,” he said. “Under these circumstances, we faced considerably more dilemmas in making policy decisions and doing our work.”A series of other measures to help tackle the country’s slow recovery from the pandemic were also outlined, including the development of new initiatives to tackle problems in the country’s crisis-hit property sector. Beijing also aims to add 12 million jobs in urban areas.Regulation of financial market will also be increased, said Premier Li, while research will stepped up in new technologies, including artificial intelligence (AI) and life sciences.For decades the Chinese economy expanded at a stellar rate, with official figures putting its gross domestic product (GDP) growing at an average of close to 10% a year.On the way it overtook Japan to become the world’s second largest economy, with Beijing claiming that it had lifted hundreds of millions of people out of poverty.Beijing says that last year the economy grew by 5.2%, which even at that level is low for China. However, some critics argue the real figure could be less than a third of that.”I think the next five or ten years is going to be difficult,” Andrew Collier Managing Director from China research firm Orient Capital Research told the BBC.”A lot of economists think the numbers are completely fabricated. The idea of 5.2% or 5.5% growth is much likely wrong. It’s more like 1% or 2%,” he adds.Whichever figures are accurate, it is clear that this vast country and its leaders face a daunting array of economic challenges. That list includes a property market in crisis, a shaky stock market, high youth unemployment and the threat of deflation as consumer prices continue to fall.Those immediate problems are compounded by longer term issues from trade and geopolitical tensions to China’s falling birth rate and aging population.Economic challengesThe most serious of the challenges are those associated with the housing market, which according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) accounts for around 20% of the economy.It is a major problem “not just for property developers but also the regional banks that are highly exposed to it,” Dan Wang, chief economist of Hang Seng Bank (China), says.The real estate industry crisis was highlighted last week when the country’s biggest private developer Country Garden was hit with a winding-up petition in Hong Kong by a creditor.It came just a month after debt-laden rival Evergrande was ordered to liquidate by a court in the city.Image source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Evergrande has been the poster child of China’s real estate crisis with more than $300bn (£236bn) of debtAnd while much of the rest of the world has struggled with soaring prices in the wake of the pandemic, China was one of the few major economies to avoid high inflation.Now though it is having to deal with the opposite problem – persistently falling prices or deflation.Consumer prices in China fell in January at the fastest pace in almost 15 years, marking the fourth month in a row of declines.It was the sharpest drop since September 2009, when the world economy was still reeling from the effects of the global financial crisis.Deflation is bad for economies as it can mean that people keep putting off buying big ticket items, like washing machines or cars, on the expectation that they will be cheaper in the future.It also has an impact on people and businesses with debts. Prices and incomes may fall, but debts do not. For a company with falling revenue, or a household with a declining income, debt payments become more of a burden.All of this means China is lacking something vital to a strong economy: confidence. And authorities have been scrambling to reassure investors and consumers.”Messaging from policymakers continues to be about restoring confidence and domestic demand,” Catherine Yeung from Fidelity International told the BBC.So far that has meant a series of relatively small measures targeting different parts of the economy.This year alone, borrowing costs have been cut and direct support offered to developers along with other actions to tackle the property crisis.Earlier this month, in a shock move, the head of China’s stock market regulator was replaced, in what was seen as a signal that the government was ready to take forceful measures to end the rout in its $8 trillion stock market.Officials have also moved to clamp down on traders betting against shares in Chinese companies, and imposed new rules on selling shares at the start and end of the trading day.An aging population and a delicate geopolitical balance Beyond these immediate issues China also faces a number of more far-reaching challenges, including slowing productivity growth and an aging population.”The demographic dynamics are quite unfavourable, with the population aging fast due to the one child policy,” Qian Wang, chief Asia-Pacific economist at investment firm Vanguard.”Unlike Japan that got rich before it got old, China is getting old before it gets rich,” she adds.China’s population drops for second straight yearWhat is the ‘One China’ policy?China tells US it will ‘never compromise’ on TaiwanThere is also the seemingly intractable geopolitical issue of Taiwan.Beijing sees self-ruled Taiwan as a breakaway province that will eventually be part of China, and has not ruled out the use of force to achieve this. But Taiwan sees itself as distinct from the Chinese mainland.Taiwan is a key flashpoint in the tussle between China and the US for supremacy in Asia. This, at the very least, greatly complicates China’s relations with the US and many other major Western economies.There is also the ongoing trade dispute with the US, which started in 2018 under then-President Donald Trump and has shown no sign of easing during the Biden administration.A potential second term in office for Mr Trump could well see a ramping up of tensions between Washington and Beijing.Mr Trump, in characteristically hawkish comments about China, said he would impose more tariffs on its goods if he wins the US presidential election in November.In an interview with Fox News, he said the tariffs could be in excess of 60%: “We have to do it,” he said.Image source, Getty ImagesImage caption, A potential second term in office for Mr Trump could well see a ramping up of tensions between Washington and BeijingWhile that may make for plenty of headlines, Ms Yeung suggests financial markets may be able to take this in their stride.”Most of this negative news has already been factored in to share valuations”, she says.Whether Mr Xi’s long-term plans for China will turn around his country’s fortunes remains to be seen. What is clear though is that its more than 1.4 billion people are unlikely to enjoy a return to double digit annual growth, and the prosperity that comes with it, anytime soon.Related TopicsXi JinpingChinaChina economyMore on this storyCan a rubberstamp parliament help China’s economy?Published1 day agoChina’s population drops for second straight yearPublished17 JanuaryMore China tariffs if re-elected, Trump saysPublished5 FebruaryChina tightens stock market rules after sell-offPublished29 JanuaryCrisis-hit China Evergrande ordered to liquidatePublished29 JanuaryChina’s debt outlook downgraded as economy slowsPublished5 December 2023Is China’s economy a ‘ticking time bomb’?Published30 August 2023Top StoriesChildren starving to death in northern Gaza – WHOPublished7 hours agoWatch: ‘My biggest financial regret is…’ VideoWatch: ‘My biggest financial regret is…’Published2 hours agoTeen girl restrained and stripped by prison staffPublished45 minutes agoFeaturesWatch: ‘My biggest financial regret is…’ VideoWatch: ‘My biggest financial regret is…’The Papers: NHS budget warning and Hunt ‘to keep fuel tax cut’ When is the Budget and what will it mean for my money?Concern as the gambling industry embraces AIIn Ukraine, the show must go on – even undergroundWould a £150,000 wage tempt you to a Scottish island?Trump: The Sequel? 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[ad_1] The announcement comes as the ruling Communist Party tries to reinvigorate the Chinese economy.
![BBC HomepageSkip to contentAccessibility HelpYour accountLiveNotificationsHomeNewsSportWeatheriPlayerSoundsBitesizeMore menuMore menuSearch BBCHomeNewsSportWeatheriPlayerSoundsBitesizeCBBCCBeebiesFoodClose menuBBC NewsMenuHomeIsrael-Gaza warCost of LivingWar in UkraineClimateUKWorldBusinessPoliticsCultureMoreTechScienceHealthFamily & EducationIn PicturesNewsbeatBBC VerifyDisabilityWorldAfricaAsiaAustraliaEuropeLatin AmericaMiddle EastUS & CanadaBiden classified documents: Special counsel raises questions about the president’s ‘poor memory’Published41 minutes agoShareclose panelShare pageCopy linkAbout sharingRelated TopicsUS election 2024Image source, Getty ImagesBy Matt MurphyBBC News, WashingtonA landmark report from Special Counsel Robert Hur has raised serious questions about President Joe Biden’s memory, allegations the White House has been quick to rebuff. Declining to prosecute Mr Biden for retaining troves of classified documents, Mr Hur – a Republican – said the 81-year-old would likely present himself at trial as “a sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory”. Elsewhere, the report challenged Mr Biden for retaining reams of classified information, and for storing it improperly and insecurely. The White House has already attacked the report, saying the descriptions of the president’s memory were not “accurate or appropriate” and said that they had no place in a Department of Justice report. Major questions raised about the president’s memoryThe report found that the president’s memory “appeared to have significant limitations”.The quotes are among dozens of examples in the report which raise major questions about Mr Biden’s memory and mental agility. In one passage, the special counsel described extended interview with the ghost writer of Mr Biden’s book, Mark Zwonitzer, where the president appeared to struggle to recall significant events from his time serving as vice-president to Barack Obama. “Mr Biden’s recorded conversations with Zwonitzer from 2017 are often painfully slow, with Mr Biden struggling to remember events and straining at times to read and relay his own notebook entries.” The report then details Mr Biden’s interviews with the special counsels’ office, for which he sat voluntarily, six years later. It describes his memory as having become worse in intervening period. “In his interview with our office, Mr Biden’s memory was worse. He did not remember when he was vice president, forgetting on the first day of the interview when his term ended (‘if it was 2013 – when did I stop being Vice President?’), and forgetting on the second day of the interview when his term began (‘in 2009, am I still Vice President’).” Elsewhere, the report says that Mr Biden struggled to remember key events that caused divisions in the early days of the Obama administration. In particular, it suggests that Mr Biden struggled to describe the intricacies of a debate surrounding the surge of troops into Afghanistan in 2009. The then vice-president was opposed to President Obama’s decision to send 30,000 additional US troops into the country to support the government of Hamid Karzai. Instead, Mr Biden wanted to expand special operations missions and drone strikes. “His memory appeared hazy when describing the Afghanistan debate that was once so important to him. Among other things, he mistakenly said he “had a real difference” of opinion with General Karl Eikenberry, when, in fact, Eikenberry was an ally whom Mr Biden cited approvingly in his Thanksgiving memo to President Obama.”Image source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Mr Biden disagreed with Mr Obama’s decision to send 30,000 US troops to shore up Hamid Karzai’s governmentElsewhere, Mr Hur’s report also suggests that Mr Biden could not recall when exactly his son, Beau, passed away. “He did not remember, even within several years, when his son Beau died.” The president’s son, a former US army soldier in Iraq and Delaware’s ex-attorney general, died in May 2015, aged 46. Mr Biden has described the event as one of the worst days of his life. While Mr Hur’s report offers these examples as evidence of Mr Biden’s diminished mental faculties, the report has already come under attack from Democrats. Richard Sauber – Mr Biden’s special counsel – condemned the report and urged Mr Hur, who has no medical training, to “revisit [his] descriptions of President Biden’s memory and revise them so that they are stated in a manner that is within the bounds of your expertise and remit”.Mr Sauber also observed that the interviews began the day after the Hamas attack on Israel on 7 October last year, and that Mr Hur seemed to accept it was reasonable that other witnesses could not recall events which, in some cases, occurred almost 15 years ago. Biden stored classified documents next to a dog bedIn another section of the report, Mr Hur described how investigators who raised Mr Biden’s home in Delaware found scores of classified documents relating to Afghanistan in his cluttered garage. The report said the files were discovered “near a collapsed dog crate, a dog bed, a Zappos box, an empty bucket, a broken lamp wrapped with duct tape, potting soil, and synthetic firewood”.Image source, FBIImage caption, A number of classified files were found in Mr Biden’s cluttered garageBut it noted that “reasonable juror could conclude that this is not where a person intentionally stores what he supposedly considers to be important classified documents, critical to his legacy”. Instead, Mr Hur once again raised questions over Mr Biden’s memory, saying the discovery looked “like a place a person stores classified documents he has forgotten about or is unaware of”. Biden thought Obama was making a major mistake with Afghanistan surgeShortly after coming to office, Mr Obama became convinced that a surge of US forces into Afghanistan was the only way to maintain stability in the country. Mr Biden, as previously stated, was strongly opposed to the policy. The then vice-president viewed himself as “a historic figure” who frequently maintained diaries and records with a view to later writing his legacy. The report says Biden had a strong motive to keep the classified documents about Afghanistan, because he wanted to prove that he was opposed to Mr Obama’s decision to send extra troops there.He “believed President Obama’s 2009 troop surge was a mistake on par with Vietnam”, the report states, adding: “He wanted record to show that he was right about Afghanistan; that his critics were wrong.”Contrast drawn with evasive TrumpMr Hur credits Mr Biden with immediately handing over the documents to investigators after he found them. “Mr Biden turned in classified documents to the National Archives and the Department of Justice, consented to the search of multiple locations including his homes, sat for a voluntary interview. and in other ways cooperated with the investigation.” And he drew a strong distinction with former President Donald Trump, who he says adopted the opposite approach. Mr Trump is facing multiple charges for obstructing efforts to investigate the storage of the files at his Florida home. “Unlike the evidence involving Mr. Biden, the allegations set forth in the indictment of Mr Trump, if proven, would present serious aggravating facts.”Most notably, after being given multiple chances to return classified documents and avoid prosecution, Mr Trump allegedly did the opposite. According to the indictment, he not only refused to return the documents for many months, but he also obstructed justice by enlisting others to destroy evidence and then to lie about it.”Image source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Donald trump allegedly kept secret documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate after he left office and obstructed government efforts to retrieve themIt was reasonable for Biden to keep some classified diaries Mr Biden has long kept notebooks in which he would write classified information during meetings. The report noted that during his eight years as vice-president, Mr Biden regularly kept notebooks that included details of classified subjects, including the President’s Daily Brief and National Security Council meetings. These notebooks were later removed from the White House and discovered in unlocked drawers and from the basement of his Delaware and Virginia homes. Mr Biden, the report said, was aware the notebooks contained classified information but still read aloud from them to his ghost writer. But the report accepts that given the precedent set by former President Ronald Reagan – who also kept notebooks filled with classified information – that it may have been reasonable for Mr Biden to believe that he had a right to hold onto the information. “Many jurors would conclude that, given the Department’s treatment of Mr Reagan, who kept his classified diaries for more than a decade before his death, it would have been plausible for Mr Biden to believe he could properly keep his classified notebooks. Citing relevant sources of likely would not sway such jurors from this conclusion.” Related TopicsRepublican PartyUS election 2024Joe BidenMore on this storyBiden will not be charged over top secret documentsPublished36 minutes agoBiden interviewed over handling of classified filesPublished10 October 2023Top StoriesSpecial counsel raises questions about Biden’s memoryPublished41 minutes agoStarmer defends U-turn on £28bn green spendingPublished4 hours agoKing doing ‘extremely well’ after diagnosis, says Queen. VideoKing doing ‘extremely well’ after diagnosis, says QueenPublished3 hours agoFeaturesWhat does Putin gain from Tucker Carlson interview?’We are surrounded’ – Guarding the Middle East’s most dangerous borderWhat happened to Labour’s £28bn for green projects?North Koreans working in China ‘exploited like slaves’Listen: Starmer faces backlash over scaling back of green plan. 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![BBC HomepageSkip to contentAccessibility HelpYour accountLiveNotificationsHomeNewsSportWeatheriPlayerSoundsBitesizeMore menuMore menuSearch BBCHomeNewsSportWeatheriPlayerSoundsBitesizeCBBCCBeebiesFoodClose menuBBC NewsMenuHomeIsrael-Gaza warCost of LivingWar in UkraineClimateUKWorldBusinessPoliticsCultureMoreTechScienceHealthFamily & EducationIn PicturesNewsbeatBBC VerifyDisabilityWorldAfricaAsiaAustraliaEuropeLatin AmericaMiddle EastUS & CanadaDoes Germany’s economy need more than a cup of coffee?Published33 minutes agoShareclose panelShare pageCopy linkAbout sharingImage source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Exports have traditionally been a strength of Germany’s economy but have been fallingBy Jonathan Josephs & Jessica ParkerBusiness Reporter & Berlin Correspondent, BBC News”I’m afraid that we will actually miss out on the future, because we’re taking too little risks.”Verena Pausder is a successful German entrepreneur who is clear about where she thinks the economy is going wrong. This week, it was confirmed that Europe’s biggest economy shrank by 0.3% last year.Whilst the country avoided recession – thanks to a statistical quirk – most economists think Germany will be in that position when the numbers for the first part of this year are published. Germany’s growth is being held back by the twin shocks of the energy crisis, caused by the war in Ukraine, and higher interest rates.There are also long-term structural issues such as ageing infrastructure, a labour shortage and the cost of tackling climate change.Germany’s far right seek revolution in farmers’ protests Global economy set for weakest growth since CovidGermany to cut green spending to meet budget rulesAt January’s World Economic Forum in Davos, Germany’s finance minister Christian Lindner denied these problems made Germany the “sick man” of Europe.”After very successful periods since 2012 and these years of crisis, Germany is a tired man after a short night, and the low growth expectations are probably a wake up call,” he said.”And now, we have a good cup of coffee, which means structural reforms, and then we will be continuing to succeed economically.”Image source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Finance Minister Christian Lindner, Economy Minister Robert Habeck and Chancellor Olaf Scholz are struggling to get Germany’s economy growingFor Mrs Pausder, who is chair of the German Start-up Association and founder of the kids app developer Fox & Sheep a “change in mindset” is what’s needed. “I think we’re really good at kind of listing all the negative stuff and what we’re not good at. And I think what we’re forgetting is what we actually get done.”She points out that despite the downturn there were still 2,489 start-ups founded last year and the country is making good progress in the switch to green energy.Image source, Patrycia Lukas / Verena PausderImage caption, German Start-Up Association chair Verena Pausder says the economy would benefit from a change of mindsetYounger generations are more willing to take risks, she says. But as things stand, Germany’s pension funds – which are worth more than $700bn – “are not allowed to invest into asset classes like venture capital and private equity”. “We’re used to these big brands of the past, and we want to do everything to have them in the future. And sometimes we put too much energy into conserving what we have [rather] then to investing in the new things.”Those big brands have traditionally sold huge amounts of cars, machinery and pharmaceuticals abroad, driving economic growth and influencing government policy. However, foreign demand “has been declining for many, many months”, says Dr Klaus Deutsch, the chief economist at the German Federation of Industries (BDI).Exports to non-EU countries were down 9.2% in December compared to the same time a year earlier.Dr Deutsch explains that Germany’s recovery depends on the world’s two biggest economies, as well as domestic concerns.For exports, he says, “The question of greatest importance is whether the US economy can avoid a recession” as well as if China can overcome the many challenges its economy faces.Around 7.5m people, or 16% of the workforce, are employed in manufacturing, and nearly half of what they make is sold abroad. That gloom in the manufacturing sector is, he says, driving the pessimism amongst German consumers which “is a bit worse than in most parts of the world”. Image source, AFPImage caption, Germany needs to invest billions as it continues to switch from fossil fuels to greener energy sourcesDecember’s figures showed an uptick inflation to 3.7%, which is still lower than many other major European economies. The rate at which prices are rising means people are holding back their spending on everything from cars to furniture.It’s a sentiment that’s not hard to find amid the hustle and bustle of office workers and tourists on Berlin’s shopping hub of Friedrichstrasse.On a cold, but sunny winter’s day one man tells us that he notices higher prices everywhere from his rent to his energy bills, as well as when he goes to restaurants. “Berlin used to be a cheap city. That’s not the case anymore.” A woman tells us that for her family of five the weekly supermarket shop used to come in well under 100 euros. “Now I spend well over that,” she says. A lady who says she has a “good job and a good wage” is doing “ok”. However, she adds: “I think in general things are going to get worse.”Image source, AFPImage caption, People on Berlin’s Friedrichstrasse shopping hub were pessimistic about the economic outlookDespite the shrinking economy, the number of people in work has increased steadily over the last two years. That points to lower productivity.According to Moritz Schularick, President of the Kiel Institute for the World Economy, “Unhappiness isn’t mainly driven by the current economic situation. It is driven by a deeper cultural unease as well as uncertainty and fear. There’s a lot of angst.”That sense of negativity about the outlook is reflected in the latest GfK survey of consumer sentiment, which says crises, war and inflation are all leading Germans to save rather than spend. Image source, BloombergImage caption, Carmakers such as Volkswagen have traditionally driven the exports which have fuelled Germany’s economyMr Schularick thinks the move away from cheap Russian energy is less of a challenge that the long term issues and December’s court ruling which has forced Olaf Scholz’s government into budget cuts. “One of the lessons we’ve learned from the UK and the 1930s, is that in these situations you don’t want to antagonise parts of the population even further by making painful budget cuts because that feeds the extremes and populists.”German train drivers stage longest strike on recordGermany’s far right seek revolution in farmers’ protests German law seeks to attract skilled migrant workersEconomic discontent has helped the political rise of the far-right AfD who are seen as against immigration. Amid a labour shortage that is something which is worrying business leaders such as the CEO of software giant SAP, Christian Klein.”We are completely against any kind of extremism now, because we need to have those talents coming to us to innovate, to boost the economy. And that’s why it was time indeed, to speak up not only for myself, but for the German economy.”The AfD’s deputy leader Peter Boehringer denies his party is bad for business and says companies biggest problem is high energy costs which have been caused by bad government policy. Image source, BloombergImage caption, SAP’s chief executive Christian Klein is amongst business leaders concerned the rise of political extremism will harm Germany’s economyIf Germany’s economy is to return to growth innovation will be crucial, says SAP’s Christian Klein. Germany’s most valuable company saw the amount of money it took in grow 6% last year to $33.7bn. “Many companies actually turn to SAP, especially in macroeconomic challenging times.”He explains his company is helping its customers tackle challenges ranging from supply chains to climate change and productivity challenges caused by high inflation. “In Germany, I don’t see a decline in IT budgets. What I actually see is that business leaders want to invest because they see tech as an opportunity to overcome those challenges.” Additional reporting by Damien McGuinness in BerlinYou can watch more about Germany’s struggle for economic growth on Talking Business with Aaron Heslehurst on BBC News. Viewers in the UK can watch on BBC iPlayer from 23:30 GMT on Saturday. In other countries it will be on at 23:30 GMT on Saturday, 05:30 GMT and 16:30 GMT on Sunday and 08:30 GMT on Monday.Related TopicsEuropeUS economyGermanyEurozoneOlaf ScholzEconomyInflationGlobal tradeAlternative for Germany (AfD)China economyTradeMore on this storyGermany to cut green spending to meet budget rulesPublished13 December 2023Global economy set for weakest growth since CovidPublished9 JanuaryUS economy sees surprisingly strong growthPublished25 JanuaryTop StoriesLive. 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