China’s official GDP 'charade' is in – surprise, it’s still 7%

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With so much of the freight industry’s fortunes resting on the Chinese economy, it’s little surprise that we spend so much time analysing the stats and figures. The common wisdom goes that, as long as GDP growth remains at 7% or above, we’ll be alright. But can its government’s numbers be trusted? Not according to Quartz, which has derided the latest GDP figures, claims they are “manufactured” and asks why they even need to continue. “It’s a little unclear why the government, having committed itself to slowing the economy in order to embrace reform, needs these moral hazard-inducing GDP targets at all anymore.”