HONG KONG -- Economists expect China's growth to slow to 4.1% in 2022, after the government's zero-COVID policy led to a prolonged lockdown in Shanghai that paralyzed the world's second-largest economy and hit global supply chains.
China's key financial hub imposed a two-month lockdown from the end of March as authorities tried to contain soaring COVID-19 cases. The lockdown triggered a sharp drop in China's economic growth over the April-June quarter. Despite an expected recovery in the second half of the year, economists believe the official target of around 5.5% will not be achievable in 2022.