Longstanding suspicions about the accuracy of China¡¯s official gross domestic product growth data have spurred a market for alternative calculations, which kicked into action this week after Beijing announced its economic expansion for 2023 was in line with its annual target of around 5%.
There¡¯s a consensus that the economy grew last year, propelled by a rebound in consumption after pandemic restrictions were lifted. That¡¯s readily visible in data compiled outside China¡¯s National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) ¡ª such as the number of domestic flights, or the revenue growth of consumer-focused companies.
What¡¯s also agreed between official and independent estimates is that a sharp drop in real estate construction, alongside strained local government finances and falling exports, posed downward pressure on the world¡¯s second-largest economy.
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