Rise of the 10 ‘new economy’ industries

One-third of China’s economic input may soon be driven by “new economy” industries, Caixin reports. These technology-intensive and government-encouraged sectors have risen from 28.2 percent of economic input in May to 31.5 percent in July, as tracked by the MasterCard Caixin BBD China New Economy Index (NEI). This index identified companies in 10 sectors:

1. Energy conservation and environmental protection
2. New energy
3. New-energy vehicles
4. Advanced materials
5. New information technology (IT) and information services
6. High-tech services and research and development (R&D)
7. Biotechnology
8. Financial and legal services
9. Advanced equipment manufacturing
10. Culture, sports, and entertainment

On the other hand, also according to Caixin, China’s traditional manufacturing sector is growing at a healthy rate, though other indexes of manufacturing and economic health in China have recently sent mixed signals, the Wall Street Journal notes (paywall). The Journal says that Caixin tracks a smaller sample of companies in its manufacturing index, and that its selection is more export-oriented than many of the larger state-owned enterprises included in official government figures. However, others cautioned to avoid overinterpreting the differences, as “a gradual slowdown in growth lies ahead for the Chinese economy” in any scenario.

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