China's industrial profit fell sharply in April, shrinking 8.5% from a year earlier. That is the worst drop since March 2020 and comes as high raw material prices and supply chain chaos squeeze margins and disrupt factor activity. Despite this, stocks are bouncing in Asia this morning. Hong Kong's Hang Seng is up 2.3%, as Alibaba's shares alone surged 13%. Chinese Shanghai Composite is also higher this morning, following an unprecedented nationwide meeting via teleconference held by Chinese authorities in a bid to bolster an economy battered by Covid.

For more on the story, we spoke to Victoria Scholar, who is head of investments at Interactive Investor in London.

#China #ChinaIndustry #ChinaEconomy