Summary of today’s Essential Eight:

1. Xi visits Xinjiang - Xi Jinping has reappeared in official media. According to the initial, brief CCTV report he was on an inspection tour in Urumqi, Xinjiang July 12th and 13th.

2. Outbreaks and praise for dynamic zero-Covid - There is not a lot of news on the outbreak front, in what is a positive sign Shanghai has released 60 medium and high risk areas from controls. The People’s Daily has started a new commentary series titled “Unswervingly adhere to the general policy of "dynamic zero-Covid", so once again there should be no expectation of a shift from that policy any time soon, even if BA.5 spreads faster and more widely in the country.

3. Expected Q2 GDP data - Out in a couple of hours, I expect the official data to show growth, barely, but in reality think the data show contraction.

4. Mortgage payment mess - More home buyers are threatening to withhold mortgage payments to delayed/unfinished projects, regulators have told banks to get a grip on the pot…