ADB Trims China’s Economic Growth Forecasts

Continuing trade tensions between the US and China have driven the Asian Development Bank to revise economic growth forecasts lower for developing economies in 2019, especially for China and India. The ADB now expects developing Asia to grow at 5.2% in 2019 as well as in 2020, lower than the previous estimates of 5.4% and 5.5% respectively.

China is expected to see a GDP growth of 6.1% and 5.8% in 2019 and 2020, from 6.2% and 6.0% previously. Rising prices of pork on account of African swine fever have also had an adverse impact on consumer spending in China, slowing down economic growth.

China’s Q3 GDP came in at 6.0%, the bottom of the range set by the government as the trade war with the US continued to impact the manufacturing sector and domestic demand. Inflation, however, is expected to remain high especially on account of rising food prices in China as well as in developing Asia overall.