Private enterprise

Over the last two years, the Chinese property market suffered a downturn and this has had a knock-on effect on the country’s economy. In recent weeks, the government has loosened restrictions and rolled out policies to make it easier for the public to buy houses and to boost property sales. Is this a turning point for the Chinese property market? Will the government’s mantra that “houses are for living in, not speculation” take a back seat henceforth? Zaobao correspondent Yu Zeyuan reports.

Erratic and unreasonable governance of local governments and a shift in public opinion towards left-wing ideology are just some of the causes for the private sector’s lack of confidence in China, says academic Han Heyuan. Even with the latest measures to boost the sector, government efforts seem to fall short of expectations.

China’s return to being politics-centric is the fundamental cause for the private sector’s reluctance to invest in the country and the slow growth in the Chinese economy. Economist Chen Kang gives his analysis.

Over the past four decades, China’s economic growth has been mainly driven externally by exports and internally by investments. But China can no longer count on exports to drive economic growth. Thus, the country is seeking to boost domestic demand. Academic Gu Qingyang shares that China needs a multi-prong approach, which would require a significant transformation of the economy.

With sluggish sales, a growing list of unfinished projects and mounting debt repayments, China's property crisis, which is stretching into its third year, is now spreading to state-owned developers.

China is focusing its attention on building a regulated platform economy that can drive the country’s economic recovery. That was the message from Chinese Premier Li Qiang to platform companies during a session on 12 July. How will platform companies respond? Lianhe Zaobao correspondent Chen Jing looks into the recent development.

Even after announcing his retirement in 2018, Hong Kong business magnate Li Ka-shing is still making headlines. From the introduction of his granddaughter to the family businesses to the recent divestments of his companies from the UK and Europe, recent developments have led analysts and the public to speculate on mainland China’s economic conditions and whether Li could make a comeback. Lianhe Zaobao’s China Desk delves into the recent developments surrounding Hong Kong’s “Superman”.

A swathe of negative economic data for April, which included the manufacturing sector unexpectedly contracting and retail sales missing forecasts, indicate that China's recovery remains lopsided. It’s not a question of whether there is enough money being pumped into the economy to fuel the recovery, but instead where that money is going and why people aren’t availing themselves of more credit?

Jack Ma’s recent return to China has made waves and offers some hope for the revival of the entrepreneur class in China. But this group of people have never shaken off their dual identity as entrepreneur-capitalists. With the rise of a group of diehards romanticising the glory of past eras, entrepreneurs, and in turn the development of China’s market economy, face obstacles.