China Faces Typhoon Amid Weak Consumer Spending: "It's Summer Vacation and Festival Season"

As the summer festival and vacation season arrives in China, a typhoon has made landfall, increasing the damage. Flights and train services have been canceled in various places, and tourist sites have been closed.

According to Chinese media such as Zhonghua Net on the 31st, the 5th typhoon 'Doksuri' that landed in China has caused localized heavy rain in Beijing, Tianjin, Hebei, and other areas. According to statistics from the Beijing Meteorological Observatory, from 8 p.m. on the 29th to 5 p.m. on the 30th, the average rainfall in Beijing was 89.6mm, with the Fangshan Shanshui area reaching 296.8mm.

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

Beijing is still maintaining the red rainstorm warning issued at 6 p.m. on the 29th for northern regions including Beijing, northeast, central inland, and southern areas. The Beijing Flood Control Headquarters has urged the public not to go out unless absolutely necessary. The Forbidden City, along with other palaces, tourist sites, museums, and performance venues, have also suspended operations.

In Dandong, Liaoning Province, four people who went into the mountains to pick mushrooms went missing, with two found dead and two still missing. In Fujian Province, more than 880,000 people became disaster victims in just one day, and 354,400 people evacuated. In Fangshan, Beijing, over 10,000 people were urgently relocated due to landslides, increasing the scale of the damage.

The economic damage is also significant. In Fujian Province, 6,333.53 hectares of farmland were damaged by heavy rain, of which 151.24 hectares are unharvestable. Forty-four houses collapsed, and 1,869 were partially damaged. China Central Television (CCTV) reported that the price of celery in Taiwan, where supply is difficult, has surged by more than 50%.

Especially since the typhoon occurred during the summer vacation season when various events such as beer festivals were being held across China, it is now difficult to expect a significant consumption boost related to these events during the heavy rain period.

First, transportation was disrupted. Due to weather issues, out of 1,119 flights scheduled for takeoff and landing at Beijing Capital International Airport on the 30th, 52 flights were canceled as of 3 p.m., while 517 flights operated as planned. Some trains departing from or passing through Beijing West Station and Beijing Fengtai Station were also canceled. The beer festival scheduled to be held in Kaifeng, Henan Province, was temporarily canceled, and night tours in Zhengzhou Dengfeng were suspended.

China's economic growth recovery is delayed due to disappointing consumption and the global economic downturn. China's GDP growth rate in the second quarter recorded 6.3% year-on-year, significantly below market expectations (7.0?7.3%). Retail sales last month increased by 3.1% year-on-year, falling short of the forecast (3.2%). The government has expressed willingness to support the private sector and attract foreign investors but has not presented large-scale stimulus measures.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.