On the other hand, market watchers are pointing to China as one of the few bright spots in the market amid the ongoing energy crisis. Analysts from the Bank of Singapore and HSBC continue to remain bullish on China’s stock market. The country’s diversified energy mix means it remains relatively insulated from the uptick in oil and gas prices.
It’s really hard to make sense of China’s economy at times. On the one hand, Asia’s largest economy has been grappling with an economic slowdown for the past few years after its property sector suffered a historic bust in 2020.
China has lowered its GDP growth target to 4.5% to 5% for 2026, down from 5% in 2025. The country has not downgraded its GDP growth target since 2023. The newly set range is also the lowest target set by China since 1991. This is on top of the persistently high youth unemployment rate. In March, China’s youth urban unemployment rate for those aged 16 to 24 rose to 16.9% in March, up from 16.1% in February.
