Infographic: China Returns To Pre-Pandemic Growth In Q4 2020

The Chinese economy continued its recovery in the fourth quarter of 2020, returning to a level of growth in line with pre-pandemic growth rates. According to the National Bureau of Statistics of China, the country's GDP grew by 6.5 percent year-over-year in the three months ended December 31, up from 4.9 percent in the preceding quarter and 3.2 percent growth in the quarter ended June 30.

In the first three months of 2020, the coronavirus outbreak had resulted in the first-quarter GDP decline in decades for the world's second-largest economy. And while the swift rebound resulted in 2.3 percent growth for the entirety of 2020, that is still equivalent to the worst result since 1976 for the notoriously booming economy. Nevertheless, the pace of China's recovery exceeded expectations, as the IMF and World Bank had predicted 1.85 and 2.0 percent growth for 2020 in their latest economic outlooks, respectively.

China's economic output had declined by 6.8 percent year-over-year in the first three months of 2020, after the coronavirus outbreak which originated in Wuhan (Hubei province) in December and the ensuing lockdown had stopped the country in its tracks. Prior to the COVID-19 crisis, China's economic growth had stabilized around 6 percent following a gradual slowdown from more than 10 percent growth in the first decade of the 21st century.