In the third quarter of this year, China Beige Book’s survey of thousands of companies provided a glimmer of hope for the Chinese economy. It painted a picture of stability rather than collapse.
In the fourth quarter, this is no longer the case.
The results “tell a story of pervasive weakness, national sales revenue, volumes, output, prices, profits, hiring, borrowing, and capital expenditure all weaker on-quarter,” the report states.
China Beige Book (CBB) collects data from thousands of Chinese firms every quarter including some in-depth interviews with local executives. Although the CBB does not give definitive growth numbers, it logs how many companies increased their revenues or for how many sales declined.
For example, the number of companies reporting an increase in profits was the lowest since records began at only 37 percent; 22 percent of companies reported a fall in profits. Even the services sector, a bright spot during last year’s fourth quarter, took a hit.
