Power Data Reveals Regional Manufacturing Recovery: Printing, Paper and Plastics Emerge as Rebound Highlights

According to the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), as electricity consumption returns to positive growth, economic activity in some parts of China is beginning to show signs of recovery.

The NDRC’s report on Beijing’s electricity consumption in the first quarter of 2009, issued on the 15th, says manufacturing output has partially recovered. The concurrently released Jiangxi power operation report for January–March 2009 shows Q1 industrial electricity use of 8.37 billion kWh, flat year on year, while manufacturing and mining posted clear year-on-year gains. The NDRC website also indicates that Anhui’s industrial electricity consumption has started to rise, up 8.09% year on year, pointing to a recovering economy.

Data in the report show Beijing’s total electricity consumption returned to positive growth in Q1, reaching 18.02 billion kWh, up 1.5% year on year. Secondary-industry power use showed recovery signs, with growth 0.6 percentage points higher than in Q4 last year. In March, manufacturing electricity consumption fell 4.2% year on year, but rebounded 10.8 percentage points from January–February; non-metallic mineral products, rubber and plastics products, and paper and paper products recorded relatively fast rebounds in electricity growth.

In Jiangxi, mining consumed 960 million kWh of electricity, up 6.9% year on year, while manufacturing used 5.66 billion kWh, up 1.6%. Within manufacturing, ferrous metal smelting and rolling processing used 1.52 billion kWh, up 3.1%; non-ferrous metal smelting and rolling processing used 420 million kWh, down 5.7%; cement manufacturing used 750 million kWh, down 5.8%.

The NDRC notes that Beijing’s electricity recovery is concentrated in fixed-asset-investment-related areas, with cement as a representative example, broadly matching the national pattern. At the same time, manufacturing serving the local market has maintained strong growth, especially papermaking, printing and publishing, and waste resource recycling and processing. Because these industries rely relatively less on the broader national economy, the NDRC considers them priority targets for manufacturing support.

Meanwhile, electricity consumption growth in Beijing’s real estate sector slipped from the previous quarter. Real estate electricity use rose 9% in Q1, down 3.1 percentage points from Q4 last year. The NDRC analysis suggests that fewer newly delivered housing projects and a sluggish rental and sales market were likely the two main reasons, together weighing on electricity use.

In Q1, electricity use in Beijing’s logistics-related industries continued to decline: growth for electrified railways, warehousing, and postal and telecommunications services fell 18.9%, 5.4%, and 14.2% respectively, broadly extending the downward trend since the second half of 2008. Overall goods movement remained weak, and the effects of policies to expand domestic demand still need further observation.

——This article is reprinted from China Packaging Network (pack.cn), original link: http://news.pack.cn/show-362312.html