Investors, exporters urge more aggressive approach from China despite stimulus onslaught

Investors and international exporters are holding off on new investments despite Beijing’s slew of stimulus measures

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A view of the 136th China Import and Export Fair in Guangzhou. Photo: Xinhua

He Huifengin GuangdongandSylvia Main Hong Kong

Published: 10:00am, 19 Oct 2024Updated: 10:06am, 19 Oct 2024

As Beijing strives to revive its economy with a slew of stimulus measures, private and foreign entrepreneurs remain cautious about their investment strategy in China, calling policies too narrow and insufficient to revive confidence amid economic headwinds.

Private investors and international exporters said they were holding off on new investments or shifting focus overseas, pressing for more “tangible” and “broader-based” actions.

“The Chinese government needs to take more tangible and comprehensive actions, rather than simply offering financial adjustments, which are often more notional than practical,” said Deepak Khanna, vice-president for the Asia-Pacific region at Indian home appliances company Usha International.

Khanna, whose company also operates in Guangzhou, said the recent announcements from the Ministry of Finance “failed to deliver the broad-based stimulus many had hoped for”.

Last week, officials outlined a set of policies to defuse local debt risks and stabilise the property market.

But while reiterating the central government still had “room” to raise debt and the fiscal deficit, the finance ministry did not reveal any broad-based stimulus measures.