China dispatches ministers to oversee economic recovery as property slump, drought add to risks

Beijing sent high-ranking officials, including central bank governor Yi Gang and several cabinet ministers, across the country to supervise stimulus policies

The inspections were announced a day before Premier Li Keqiang rolled out 19 new support policies for the economy, worth 1 trillion yuan (US$146 billion)

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Turmoil in the property market, a local banking crisis and drought are all weighing on the Chinese economy. Photo: AP

Published: 10:00pm, 29 Aug 2022Updated: 2:35am, 30 Aug 2022

China dispatched high-ranking officials, including cabinet ministers, across the country to demand local governments do more to stabilise growth, a rare move that may indicate the economy is in worse shape than official figures suggest.

Turmoil in the property market, a local banking crisis and financing bottlenecks for key projects would have been high on the work agenda for officials, analysts said.

China’s State Council on Wednesday last week ordered teams to carry out inspections in 19 provinces, including key drivers of economic growth like Guangdong, Jiangsu and Zhejiang, according to state media.

The inspections were announced a day before Premier Li Keqiang rolled out 19 new support policies for the economy. The stimulus package is worth 1 trillion yuan (US$146 billion) and focused largely on infrastructure.

The large-scale inspection is necessary, because July economic figures are not optimistic

Huo Jianguo

Beijing has dispatched inspection teams before, but this year they are larger and in several provinces led by higher-ranking officials.