China's economy faces triple threat after growth misses target

Low exports, increased savings and COVID wave threat cloud outlook in 2023

20230117N china train station new year rush REU

People wait to board a train at a railway station in Shanghai on Jan. 16. Hundreds of millions of Chinese typically travel around the Lunar New Year to spend the holidays with family. © Reuters

IORI KAWATE, Nikkei staff writer

January 18, 2023 03:18 JST

BEIJING -- China's economy will lurch toward a recovery in 2023 following the end of strict zero-COVID restrictions, but slow exports, increased savings and a potential resurgence in infections hang over the country's outlook.

China's real gross domestic product grew 2.9% on the year in the October-December quarter, the National Statistics Bureau reported Tuesday, slowing from a 3.9% increase in July-September. Seasonally adjusted real GDP remained flat across the two quarters.