China welcomes 29.22m visitors during the first 11 months of 2024

China has welcomed 29.22 million visitors during the first 11 months of 2024.

Of these, 17.446 million visitors entered the country without visas, marking a 123.3 per cent increase compared to the same period last year.

According to China Central Television (CCTV), the National Tourism Administration said that the country has witnessed a remarkable surge in cultural tourism, driven by the growing international interest in traditional Chinese culture and the implementation of flexible visa policies.

Meanwhile China’s yuan hit a 14-month nadir on the first trading day of 2025, but it quickly bounced from lows of 7.31 per dollar, which traders say could reflect authorities’ desire to rein in the currency’s slide before Donald Trump returns to the White House.

The onshore yuan fell to 7.31 per dollar at the market open, piercing below 7.3 for the first time since Nov. 3, 2023.

However, trades below that level disappeared from trading platforms later.

Responding to a Reuters request for comment, China’s forex market regulator said both trading counterparties canceled their orders at 7.31 per dollar. The regulator didn’t say why the orders were canceled.

Analysts and traders say the cancellation could be linked to a ‘fat finger’ error, or due to guidance from regulators who are keen to keep the yuan stable ahead of a looming trade war with the US

The cancellation shows that “authorities think keeping the yuan stronger than the 7.3-per-dollar level at this stage is reasonable,” said a trader at a Chinese bank.

China needs to closely monitor US policies under Trump and adjust countermeasures accordingly, including yuan policies, said the trader, who declined to be named.

The US President-elect has threatened to impose fresh tariffs on Chinese imports, keeping investors on edge about the impact on yuan-denominated assets.

The yuan lost 2.8 per cent against the greenback in 2024 in its third straight year of losses, hit by a triple-whammy of a broadly stronger greenback, falling Chinese yields and rising trade tensions with other economies.

On Thursday, China’s 30-year treasury yield fell below 1.9 per cent to a record low, reflecting the gloomy outlook on China’s economy and adding to depreciation pressure on the yuan.

China’s central bank continued to set a strong guidance rate, underscoring authorities’ unease over the yuan’s recent declines.

Prior to market open, the People’s Bank of China set the yuan midpoint at 7.1879 per dollar, 1,037 pips stronger than Reuters’ estimate.

The yuan had been trading a whisker below 7.3 per dollar over the past two weeks, a level seen by some in the market as a major threshold.

Reuters reported last month that China’s top leaders and policymakers are considering allowing the yuan to weaken this year as they brace for higher US trade tariffs Trump.

Meanwhile the World Bank raised its forecast for China’s economic growth in 2024 and 2025, but warned that subdued household and business confidence, along with headwinds in the property sector, would keep weighing it down next year.

The world’s second-biggest economy has struggled this year, mainly due to a property crisis and tepid domestic demand. An expected hike in US tariffs on its goods when US President-elect Donald Trump takes office in January may also hit growth.

“Addressing challenges in the property sector, strengthening social safety nets, and improving local government finances will be essential to unlocking a sustained recovery,” Mara Warwick, the World Bank’s country director for China, said.

“It is important to balance short-term support to growth with long-term structural reforms,” she added in a statement.

Thanks to the effect of recent policy easing and near-term export strength, the World Bank sees China’s gross domestic product growth at 4.9 per cent this year, up from its June forecast of 4.8 per cent.

Beijing set a growth target of “around 5 per cent” this year, a goal it says it is confident of achieving.

Although growth for 2025 is also expected to fall to 4.5 per cent, that is still higher than the World Bank’s earlier forecast of 4.1 per cent.

Slower household income growth and the negative wealth effect from lower home prices are expected to weigh on consumption into 2025, the Bank added.

To revive growth, Chinese authorities have agreed to issue a record 3 trillion yuan ($411 billion) in special treasury bonds next year, Reuters reported this week.

The figures will not be officially unveiled until the annual meeting of China’s parliament, the National People’s Congress, in March 2025, and could still change before then.

While the housing regulator will continue efforts to stem further declines in China’s real estate market next year, the World Bank said a turnaround in the sector was not anticipated until late 2025.