Beijing bets on rice cookers and microwaves to boost economy

The Chinese government has expanded the list of products that people can trade in to get up to 20% discount on new goods as the country. It is trying to boost its faltering economy.

The list now includes items such as microwaves, dishwashers, rice cookers, and water purifiers.

State-backed trade-in schemes have already covered televisions, phones, tablets and smart watches as well as electric and hybrid vehicles.

It may face the second largest economy in the world Many challengesIncluding weak consumer demand and the worsening real estate crisis.

Officials said on Wednesday that 81 billion yuan (£8.9 billion, $11 billion) had been allocated this year to the consumer goods trade programme.

China’s top economic planning body said the schemes, launched in March, had already produced “obvious effects”.

According to the country’s Ministry of Commerce, these policies have boosted sales of expensive goods such as household appliances and cars.

But some economists questioned whether the schemes would be enough to significantly increase consumer consumption.

“This approach has had mixed success so far,” said Harry Murphy Cruz, head of China economics at Moody’s Analytics.

“Although it supported sales of some listed goods, such as cars and appliances, it did not lead to an overall increase in spending.”

In recent months, China has moved forward with more measures to support its domestic economy as the country’s exporters face increasing challenges.

In December, an important meeting of Chinese leaders stressed the need for “active” efforts to boost consumer spending.

This came as President-elect Donald Trump, who is scheduled to return to the White House this month, returns. He threatened to impose customs duties of 60%. On Chinese-made products.

Next week, China is scheduled to announce economic growth figures for 2024, which Beijing said it expects to be around 5%.