My letter in today’s Financial Times warning of the risk to Western financial markets from the bursting of China’s property bubble. Many “valuations are, after all, at more extreme levels than in 2008, due to the belief that China’s demand growth is unstoppable.”
Chemicals and the Economy
China’s property sector is at the epicentre of the crisis
A branch of Centaline Property Agency in Hong Kong © Bloomberg Indebted Chinese property developers threaten a domino effect on western credit markets , as I describe in my latest post for the Financial Times, published on the BeyondBrics blog Second-order impacts are starting to appear as a result of China’s lockdowns. These are having […]
Automakers face stiff headwinds in big emerging markets
Brazil, Russia, India and China disappoint as manufacturers face investment demands of EVs © Bloomberg Less than a third of China’s 31,000 auto dealers were profitable in the first half of 2019, as I describe in my latest post for the Financial Times, published on the BeyondBrics blog Auto markets in the Bric countries are […]
Asian downturn worsens, bringing global recession nearer
The chemical industry is the best leading indicator for the global economy. And my visit to Singapore last week confirmed that the downturn underway in the Asian market creates major risks for developed and emerging economies alike. The problem is focused on China’s likely move into recession, now its stimulus policies are finally being unwound. […]
“What could possibly go wrong?”
I well remember the questions a year ago, after I published my annual Budget Outlook, ‘Budgeting for the Great Unknown in 2018 – 2020‘. Many readers found it difficult to believe that global interest rates could rise significantly, or that China’s economy would slow and that protectionism would rise under the influence of Populist politicians. […]
President Xi tells China’s government to “control asset bubbles”
China’s housing bubble is not just about Shenzhen. It is the most obvious sign of problems ahead, as I noted last month. But as the chart above shows from the Wall Street Journal, total lending to the property sector has rocketed in recent months: More than one-third of all loans went to the sector […]
China’s auto prices tumble as sales fall 3% in June
Its not a good time to be selling new cars in China. As the chart shows: Sales fell 2% in Q2 (red line) versus 2014 (green), with June down 3.4% This is the first time sales have fallen in a quarter since Q1 2011 (pink) China’s auto dealer association said customer visits to dealers “dropped […]
China’s economy continues to slow as lending curbs bite
Everyone seems sure that China’s government is about to undertake major new stimulus. Thus Reuters reported: “Economists said it was a matter of when, not if, China eased policy again after economic growth in Q1 cooled to 7%, a level not seen since the depths of the 2008/09 global financial crisis. Indeed, some analysts have […]
China lending curbs will hit global property bubbles
China’s interest bill this year is around $1.7tn, according to ratings agency Fitch. And no, the “tn” isn’t a typo. China’s interest bill is indeed around the total size of India’s economy, and larger than the economies of S Korea ($1.3tn), Spain ($1.4tn) or Mexico ($1.3tn). Common sense tells us that no economy can afford […]
China becomes net exporter of PVC as property bubble bursts
China’s property bubble is collapsing, with average house prices now down 10% from their peak. As agents Knight Frank note, “The developers have two to five years of stock to clear. So until that has been cleared, prices aren’t going up any time soon” We are also seeing more bankruptcies amongst property developers. These began a […]
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