What's going on?

China pledged big plans to wake up its sleepy economy this week, but they�re not exactly going off without a hitch.

What does this mean?

China clung to its zero-Covid stance for the best part of three years, standing by mass testing and country-stalling lockdowns while the rest of the world got back to business. But in a bid to spur on its lethargic economy, the country�s finally relaxing its painstakingly strict rules. So far, not great: experts reckon China�s now grappling with the biggest outbreak the world has ever seen, with a million new infections and 5,000 deaths a day.

China�s policymakers have little choice but to optimistically pull together economy-stabilizing plans. They�re focusing on padding up the EV market, and fortifying the crackdown-stricken tech and property sectors. Sprinkle in spending-boosting interest rate cuts from the central bank, and that should lay the groundwork for China’s economy to boom in 2023 � if the country can wriggle out of Covid�s grip, that is.

Why should I care?

For markets: Christmas miracles.
Those future-fueling plans will be music to investors� ears, and they might explain why the Hang Seng China Enterprises index � which tracks some of China�s biggest companies � jumped 3% on Thursday. China�s even started playing ball when it comes to its US-listed firms: after a decade-long standoff, US regulators said last week that they�d been allowed to inspect the work of auditors in China for the first time ever. That�s big, and should save around 200 Chinese companies � including goliaths Alibaba and JD.com � from being delisted from US exchanges.

The bigger picture: Get the jets ready.
China plans to lighten up quarantine restrictions for overseas travelers next month, which should give its deflated tourism industry a short in the arm. And there�s plenty of joy to go around: hordes of would-be travelers have been stuck at home in China, but newfound freedom could get those high-spending holidaymakers hopping around the world again.