After three years, China has dropped its zero-Covid policy, and 2023 has brought a sharp rebound in activity. Road traffic, hotel bookings and many other indicators are approaching or even exceeding their 2019 levels. It's clearly good news for the economy but what does China’s reopening mean for regional and global supply chains?

In the short term, Covid infections have been disrupting manufacturing as well as logistics networks but there are also some longer-term forces at play. The world looks different today than it did even just a few years ago, before the pandemic. The US-China trade war has prompted companies everywhere to hedge geopolitical risks by diversifying their manufacturing into other markets and shortening their supply chains. The slow burn demographic challenge is also pushing up manufacturing costs.

In this episode, Catherine Yeung, Investment Director, and Marty Dropkin, Head of Equities, Asia Pacific, are joined by Evelyn Huang, Multi Asset Portfolio Manager, and Lynda Zhou, Equity Portfolio Manager, to discuss China's rapid reopening and what it means for the country's growth outlook, for its manufacturing competitiveness, and for investors looking to position themselves for the next phase. With additional contributions from James Trafford, Analyst and Portfolio Manager.

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