The World Bank cut its economic growth forecasts for the East Asia and Pacific region on Monday and said there was a risk the slowdown in China could get worse and last longer than expected.
“China’s slowdown this year has been significant, and some fear it could still accelerate,” the World Bank said in its latest East Asia and Pacific Data Monitor, which was released in Singapore.
Ambitious investment plans announced by several local governments could face funding constraints, “not least because governments are feeling the pinch of a cooling real estate market, which lowers land sales revenues”, the international lender added.
China’s economy will likely expand by 7.7 percent this year, down from a May estimate of 8.2 percent, while the growth forecast for 2013 was cut to 8.1 percent from an earlier 8.6 percent.
via Reuters