Everything You Need to Know About China's Economy on Friday (July 5)
Your Daily & Trustworthy Updates on the Chinese Economy
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Good Friday! This is TIAN in Beijing.
Welcome to monitor the pulse of China’s economy together with me.
DRIVING THE DAY, the National Immigration Administration said China recorded 14.64 million inbound trips made by foreigners in the first half of this year, up 152.7 percent year on year.
The number of visa-free entries made by foreigners exceeded 8.54 million, accounting for 52 percent of the inbound trips and representing a year-on-year surge of 190.1 percent, according to the administration.
In the first six months of the year, immigration authorities across China had processed 287 million inbound and outbound trips, marking a 70.9 percent rise year on year.
Among them, around 137 million were made by mainland residents, 121 million by residents from the Hong Kong and Macao special administrative regions and the Taiwan region, and 29.22 million by foreigners.
In the latest move towards opening up, China has implemented visa-free policies for ordinary passport holders from New Zealand, Australia, Poland, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain and Malaysia, among others.
MEANWHILE, China's Ministry of Commerce announced Friday that it will hold an anti-dumping hearing on brandy imported from the EU on July 18, 2024.
The hearing will be about industrial damage, cause and effect, and public interest in the anti-dumping probe of related brandy products, the ministry said in an online statement.
China started an anti-dumping investigation into brandy imported from the EU on Jan. 5, 2024.
Meanwhile, the European Commission announced on Thursday it will impose provisional countervailing duties on imports of battery electric vehicles (BEVs) from China starting Friday.
ALSO ON FRIDAY, floods and geological disasters triggered by recent heavy rainfall in east China's Jiangxi Province had impacted over 1.56 million people by Thursday evening, according to statistics revealed by local authorities.
According to Jiangxi's flood-control and drought-relief headquarters, homes belonging to 43 households had collapsed and over 2.41 million mu (about 160,667 hectares) of farmland had been flooded. Direct economic losses are estimated to be 1.86 billion yuan (about 260.9 million U.S. dollars).
Chinese authorities on Wednesday launched a Level IV emergency response to floods in Jiangxi.
The National Disaster Reduction Commission has dispatched a team to guide and assist local governments with disaster relief work and rescue efforts, aiming to ensure the basic needs of affected residents.
At the request of Jiangxi provincial authorities, the State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters and other departments have allocated woven bags, lighting equipment, drainage pumps, life jackets and other emergency relief materials with a total value of about 8.13 million yuan to the province.
Affected by persistent heavy rainfall, it is expected that water levels of the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River, Poyang Lake and Dongting Lake will continue to rise. The water level of Taihu Lake will remain above its warning mark.
IN TODAY'S FINANCIAL MARKET,
Shanghai Composite Index Fell 0.26% on Friday
China’s benchmark Shanghai Composite Index (000001.SH) lost 0.26% on Friday, while the Shenzhen Component Index (399001.SZ) rose 0.25%.
Shanghai’s tech-heavy STAR 50 Index (000688.SH) gained 1.23% for the day, while Shenzhen’s similar ChiNext Index (399006.SZ) rose 0.51%.
Chinese yuan strengthens to 7.1289 against USD Friday
The central parity rate of the Chinese currency renminbi, or the yuan, strengthened 16 pips to 7.1289 against the U.S. dollar Friday, according to the China Foreign Exchange Trade System.
In China's spot foreign exchange market, the yuan is allowed to rise or fall by 2 percent from the central parity rate each trading day.
Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index closes 1.27 pct lower
Hong Kong's stock market ended lower on Friday with the benchmark Hang Seng Index down 1.27 percent to close at 17,799.61 points.
The Hang Seng China Enterprises Index lost 1.37 percent to end at 6,382.27 points, while the Hang Seng Tech Index dropped by 1.45 percent to close at 3,596.8 points.
AT THE END OF TODAY'S SHARING, LET'S TAKE A LOOK AT YOUR DAILY FUTURES:
Cotton futures closed higher Friday in daytime trading on the Zhengzhou Commodity Exchange.
The most active cotton contract for September 2024 delivery gained 30 yuan (about 4.21 U.S. dollars) to close at 14,770 yuan per tonne.
On Friday, the total trading volume for six listed cotton futures contracts on the ZCE was 356,497 lots with a turnover of 26.28 billion yuan.
Sugar futures closed higher Friday in daytime trading on the Zhengzhou Commodity Exchange.
The most active sugar contract for September 2024 delivery gained 5 yuan (about 70.14 U.S. cents) to close at 6,261 yuan per tonne.
On Friday, the total trading volume for six listed sugar futures contracts on the ZCE was 353,602 lots with a turnover of 21.97 billion yuan.
Iron ore futures closed lower on Friday in daytime trading at the Dalian Commodity Exchange.
The most active iron ore contract for September 2024 delivery dipped 17.5 yuan (about 2.45 U.S. dollars) to close at 845.5 yuan per tonne.
On Friday, the total trading volume of 12 listed iron ore futures contracts on the exchange was 469,269 lots, with a turnover of about 39.88 billion yuan.
No.1 soybean futures closed higher on Friday in daytime trading at the Dalian Commodity Exchange.
The most active No.1 soybean contract for September 2024 delivery gained 25 yuan (about 3.51 U.S. dollars) to close at 4,729 yuan per tonne.
On Friday, the total trading volume of five listed No.1 soybean futures contracts on the exchange was 87,831 lots, with a turnover of about 4.13 billion yuan.
About the Newsletter:
Ran by TIAN Dongdong, this newsletter features daily, trustworthy content on China's economy and regularly updates the insights of Chinese youth on Sino-US relations. Having worked in Brussels, London, Cairo, and Tripoli for Chinese media as correspondent for several years, TIAN is now based in Beijing.