China's economic growth will remain subdued in the first quarter of 2016, expanding by around 6.7 percent before gradually stabilizing in the second quarter, a government think tank forecast on Monday. The predicted growth would be a further slowdown from the 6.8 percent expansion seen in the previous quarter, due to slower industrial production and investments, and weak consumption and exports, according to a report released by the National Academy of Economic Strategy. The institution expects consumer prices to grow by around 2.2 percent in the first three months.

6.5% target 'well within China's reach'

The continuous slowdown of China's economy does not mean the country will be unable to reach its target of maintaining annual growth of at least 6.5 percent during the next five years, former World Bank chief economist Justin Yifu Lin said in a newly published commentary. The required minimum pace, albeit significantly slower than the 9.7 percent China has averaged since 1979, is undeniably fast by international standards. It is also only 0.4 percentage point lower than the 6.9 percent China achieved last year.

State firms' profits slump further

China's State-owned enterprises saw profit declines accelerate in the first two months of 2016 as they were hit by a slowing economy, official data showed. SOEs saw combined profits slump 14.2 percent year-on-year in the January-February period to 222.6 billion yuan ($34.2 billion), according to the Ministry of Finance, a much sharper drop than the 6.7 percent fall recorded for 2015.

Uruguay to promote Mercosur-China FTA

Uruguay expects to promote the signing of a free trade agreement between Mercosur, or the Southern Common Market, and China when Uruguay holds its pro-tempore presidency, Uruguayan Foreign Minister Rodolfo Nin Novoa was quoted as saying over the weekend. "We want to get closer to China, because it is the main business partner to all Mercosur countries," Nin Novoa told the Senate's International Affairs Committee, according to local newspaper El Observador. "This is the case of Uruguay, Paraguay, Argentina and also undoubtedly Brazil. We will promote a free trade agreement between the Southern Common Market and China," he said.

Companies markets

Trainmaker opens smart equipment park

China Railway Rolling Stock Corp broke ground on a 10 billion yuan ($1.53 billion) smart-equipment manufacturing center on Sunday. CRRC's eco-friendly industrial park is in the Kaiping development zone in Tangshan, an iron and steel city in North China's Hebei province. The park covers an area of 120 hectares. It will be a hub for energy-saving and smart-equipment manufacturing industries thanks to investment of 3.3 billion yuan in the first phase.

Guiyang hosts talent convention

The 4th Professionals Convention of Guizhou opened on Saturday in the provincial capital Guiyang. The two-day event attracted almost 750,000 participants, said Xiong Xiaoqiu, chief of the Network Interview program of the event. Network Interview was introduced to the event last year, which helps communication between interviewers and interviewees. It allowed interviewees to save time and cut costs.

Tokyo shares end higher on weaker yen

Tokyo shares ended trading on Monday higher on a weaker yen that boosted buying of export-related issues and a better US economy data for the last quarter of 2015. The 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average jumped 131.62 points, or 0.77 percent, higher from Friday to 17,134.37. The broader Topix index of all First Section issues on the Tokyo Stock Exchange was up 15.80 points, or 1.16 percent, at 1,381.85.

Baofeng to move into music, movies

Chinese Internet video company Baofeng Technology Co Ltd has announced it plans to invest in music, games, films and virtual reality. It will establish a film subsidiary company and become the shareholder of a music group created by a merger of music websites Kugou and Kuwo. The Beijing-based Internet company will also acquire the equity of Internet game developers GumpTech Co Ltd and Lidong Technology and Jiangsu Straw Bear Pictures, with a total investment of 3.1 billion yuan ($480 million), said a statement issued by the company.

Around the world

Vietnam's Q1 rice exports up over 40%

Vietnam is expected to see a year-on-year increase of 41.6 percent in rice export volume and 40.8 percent in export revenue in the first quarter of 2016, according to a report by Vietnam's Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development on Monday. Specifically, the country is estimated to export some 1.59 million metric tons of rice worth $692 million during the period, said the ministry. In March alone, the country is likely to earn $274 million from shipping 629,000 tons of rice abroad.

Japanese oppose sales tax hike

A new poll released on Sunday showed that 64.6 percent of the Japanese public oppose the government's plan to further hike sales tax from current 8 percent to 10 percent in April next year, according to local reports. The telephone survey, which was conducted by Japan's Kyodo News through the weekend, also showed that 44.3 percent of the respondents approve a possible "double election" in which the Diet's lower house may be dissolved for a general election together with the planned upper house race in this summer.

German manufacturers in upbeat mood

More German manufacturers expect growth in exports in March than last month, research group Ifo institute reported. The outlook value rose to 6.4 balance points in March from 4.7 points in February, the think tank said. "This is positive news at an uncertain and troubled time," Ifo President Hans-Werner Sinn noted, adding that developments in individual branches were highly heterogeneous. The Ifo business climate index is considered the most important barometer for the German economy.

Myanmar's trade deficit increases

Myanmar's trade deficit in the fiscal year from April 2015 to March 2016 reached roughly $5.3 billion, increasing by $1.12 billion year-on-year, the country's Ministry of Commerce. The export value for the period was more than $10.5 billion while the import value surpassed $15.8 billion. The country mainly exports natural gas, jade and rice while major import items are refined oil and fuel, industrial machinery and automobile parts.

(China Daily USA 03/29/2016 page14)