Changchun Party Chief Breaks Tradition with Warning on Economic Challenges

In a rare departure from the norm of reporting only positive news, Zhang Enhui, the party chief of Changchun, publicly warned of 'unprecedented difficulties and challenges' facing the city's economy on July 22. This comes as China's GDP growth slowed to 4.3% in the second quarter, down from 5% in the first quarter, bringing first-half growth to 4.7%, barely within the official full-year target of 4.5-5%. The slowdown is attributed to falling private sector and fixed-asset investment, with fixed-asset investment down 5.7% year on year and property investment plunging 18% in the first half. Retail sales growth also weakened to 0.2% in the second quarter from 2.4% in the first. Despite these indicators, policymakers appear relatively untroubled by weakening domestic demand as long as external demand holds up. Zhang Enhui urged 'all-out efforts' to confront these challenges, marking a notable break from the usual practice of burying bad news for propaganda and career advancement.