China's Retail Sales Slump As Lockdowns Cause Chaos

China's retail sales and factory output slumped to their lowest levels in around two years, official data showed Monday, capturing the dismal economic fallout from Beijing's zero-Covid policy

Beijing, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 16th May, 2022 ) :China's retail sales and factory output slumped to their lowest levels in around two years, official data showed Monday, capturing the dismal economic fallout from Beijing's zero-Covid policy.

The world's second-largest economy has persisted with strict virus measures, choking up global supply chains as dozens of Chinese cities -- including key business hub Shanghai -- grapple with restrictions.

Although officials have said they plan to gradually reopen the city, there is no sign of Beijing shifting from the strict zero-Covid approach which analysts warn is severely hitting the economy.

The latest cut came Monday when the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) announced data showing that retail sales shrank 11.1 percent on-year in April.

It is the biggest slump since March 2020, as consumers remained cooped up at home or jittery over restrictions as China battles its worst Covid outbreak since the early days of the pandemic.

"In April, the epidemic had a big impact on economic operations," NBS spokesman Fu Linghui told reporters Monday, adding that the outbreak had a "significantly larger-than-expected" effect.

But he stressed that the hit would be "short-term".

Industrial production growth sank 2.9 percent on-year, reflecting damage from shuttered factories and transportation woes as officials ramped up Covid restrictions last month.

This is down from 5.0 percent growth in March.

"The prolonged Shanghai lockdown and its ripple effect through China, as well as logistics delays resulting from highway controls...have severely affected domestic supply chains," said Tommy Wu of Oxford Economics.

He added that household consumption was "hit even harder" and disruptions could extend into June.

Home sales dropped 32 percent on-year in the first four months, NBS data showed, reflecting weakness in the key property sector which was struggling even before the latest lockdowns.

Several Chinese developers have sagged under the weight of massive borrowing and defaulted on million-dollar debt repayments.