China’s economy has recovered to pre-COVID-19 pandemic level

 China's GDP expanded at the fast pace of 18.3% in the first quarter of 2021

China has become the first major economy in the world to recover to pre-pandemic levels. Chinese economy has shown resilience and its GDP expanded at the fast pace of 18.3% in the first quarter of 2021.

Major economic indicators ranging from GDP, industrial production, trade, retail sales and investment suggest China's economy has recovered to pre-COVID levels.

The world's second largest economy was the only major one to grow at all in 2020, supported by strong retail spending and industrial activity as well as better-than-expected exports as the virus hit markets around the world.

China's $16 trillion economy has been powered by its vast industrial sector over the past year. Its factories have raced to fill overseas orders for goods ranging from protective masks to work-from-home electronics, with rival manufacturers abroad paralysed by COVID-19.
This year, Chinese consumers are finally opening up their wallets after months of hesitation. Retail sales jumped 34.2% in March from a year earlier.

China was the first country to hit by COVID-19 pandemic in December 2019. The COVID-19 spread in Wuhan and other cities. But China imposed lockdown and stops the spread of pandemic to other areas. China also became the first country to open its economy after controlling the COVID-19 pandemic. That is why China is called “first in” “first out” country as far as COVID-19 is concerned.

China's economy expanded at its fastest pace on record in the first quarter, data showed Friday, in a sharp turnaround from the historic contraction caused by the coronavirus outbreak.

The world's second largest economy was the only major one to grow at all in 2020, supported by strong retail spending and industrial activity as well as better-than-expected exports as the virus hit markets around the world.

It marks the fastest pace since quarterly records began three decades ago, though the GDP figure of 18.3 percent is slightly below forecasts in an AFP survey of economists.

While the disease first emerged in central China in late 2019, the country was also the quickest to bounce back after authorities imposed strict control measures and consumers stayed home.

"The national economy made a good start," National Bureau of Statistics spokeswoman Liu Aihua told reporters Friday. The sharp spike was partly due to "incomparable factors such as the low base figure of last year and increase of working days due to staff staying put during the Lunar New Year" holiday, said Liu.

Migrant workers had been urged to remain in the areas where they work during the break owing to fears that the annual massive migration might lead to local outbreaks. But Liu added that quarter-on-quarter growth has "demonstrated a steady recovery".

Across key sectors, China powered on in its economic rebound after caution around the holiday period subsided and domestic consumption soared. In March, the country's industrial output rose 14.1 percent on-year, bringing first quarter growth to 24.5 percent, the official data showed.

Retail sales surged 34.2 percent, picking up from the first two months and bringing first-quarter growth to 33.9 percent as life largely returned to normal. Liu, however, warned that the international landscape still contained "high uncertainties".

                                                      Khalid Bhatti