China has abandoned its zero-Covid policy. What will the economy look like in 2023?

As China moves ever closer to fully reemerging from three years of government-imposed Covid isolation and reintegrating with the world, economic expectations are high. Beijing’s recent pivot from its stringent zero-Covid strategy — which had long choked businesses — is expected to inject vitality into the world’s second-largest economy next year.

Covid lockdowns and border curbs have left China out of sync with the rest of the world, disrupting supply chains and damaging the flow of trade and investment. And with the global economy now facing significant challenges, including energy shortages, slowing growth and high inflation, China’s reopening could provide a much-needed and timely boost. But the process of reopening is likely to be erratic and painful, according to economists, with the country’s economy in for a bumpy ride in the first few months of 2023.

China’s historic property downturn and a potential global recession could also cause more headaches in the new year, they added.

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