1. Growth
On the face of it, China has little to worry about. Official figures show that the economy is growing at an annual rate of 7%, the sort of expansion western nations can only dream about. But there are doubts about whether the official data is correct. The Economist has developed an unofficial “Keqiang index”, based on Li’s own technique of looking at indicators such as electricity use and rail freight volumes to assess what is really going on in the economy. These provide a much less rosy picture, with rail freight volumes down 11% on a year ago and electricity production flat. Using similar measures the London-based consultancy Fathom estimates China is really growing at 3.1% a year, not 7%
