What’s Up (or Down) With China’s Economy?

China’s economy, the second largest in the world behind the U.S., grew at 6.9 percent in 2015. That was pretty close to its target of 7 percent for the year but also the slowest rate since 1990. Data released by the Chinese government shows fourth quarter growth at 6.8 percent. As recently as 2007 China’s annual economic growth was in double digits, exceeding 14 percent.

The slowdown is not a surprise, it has been happening for awhile and most economists expect the slowdown to be a gradual loss of momentum rather than a dramatic drop.