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April 21 (Reuters) - BofA Global Research and other
banks raised their forecast for China's 2023 gross domestic
product (GDP) growth this week, after first-quarter economic
growth data came in stronger than expected.
BofA now expects China's economy to grow 6.3% this year from
5.5% earlier, after climbing 4.5% in the first-quarter as
policymakers moved to bolster growth following the end of strict
COVID-19 curbs in December.
BofA said it expects private consumption, which drove the
first quarter beat, to further expand into investment over the
next two quarters.
"In our view, we are seeing the beginning of a new credit
cycle, which will fuel investment growth more than consumption
and lift cyclical momentum in China," BofA economists said in a
note on Friday.
BofA added that commercial banks have pointed to higher and
more stable new corporate loan prices due to better demand in
March.
Earlier this week, J.P.Morgan, Citigroup and UBS also raised
their full year GDP growth forecast for China to 6.4%, 6.1% and
5.7% respectively, following the strong data.
Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs maintained their growth
forecasts at 5.7% and 6.0% respectively, with the former
flagging the possibility of an upside to its view.
The upgrades come as recession drumbeats in the United
States get louder. Most big global banks expect the U.S. economy
to tip into recession in the back half of the year.
(Reporting by Reshma Rockie George in Bengaluru; Editing by
Savio D'Souza and Varun H K)
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