China struggles to find its growth mojo

<p>Kia ora,</p><p>Welcome to Monday’s Economy Watch where we follow the economic events and trends that affect Aotearoa/New Zealand.</p><p>I'm David Chaston and this is the international edition from Interest.co.nz.</p><p>And today the fizzling Chinese economy is looking for a big policy boost from Beijing.</p><p>In Beijing, they <a href="http://www.scio.gov.cn/xwfbh/yg/index.htm" target="_blank"><strong>said</strong></a> that at 4pm today (NZT) a senior official will announce new measures "to restore and expand consumption" in the government’s latest effort to engineer a revival in their economy. There have been a number of measures announced over the past few months with nothing effective so far, and all have fizzled against a backdrop of people prioritising savings as they turn cautious about their future. If this one is to be a game-changer, it would have to be pretty dramatic.</p><p>Emphasising their problems China, <a href="http://www.pbc.gov.cn/goutongjiaoliu/113456/113469/5002892/index.html" target="_blank"><strong>new data released</strong></a> for the June quarter showing that household mortgage balances were lower than in March as borrowers prioritised paying down this debt and took out much fewer new home loans. That is the first time that has ever happened. Rising household saving and aggressive deleveraging will make it harder for their economy to expand. When households lack confidence to invest and expand, it is then all down to the private, and especially the government sectors. Their "dual circulation" strategy is failing. <a href="https://www.scmp.com/business/china-business/article/3229297/chinas-first-ever-decline-mortgage-loans-sets-alarm-bells-ringing-piling-pressure-beijing-stem" target="_blank"><strong>The pressure is on Beijing</strong></a>.</p><p>And staying in China, we all know the north of the country has suffered through heat-dome conditions recently with its extreme temperatures. In the South it has been very heavy rain. Now <a href="https://news.cctv.com/2023/07/29/ARTIMh6JG9V7Hnh