Major natural disasters of 2008 , such as the 2008 Chinese winter storms , the 2008 Sichuan earthquake , and the 2008 South China floods mildly affected national economic growth but did do major damage to local and regional economies and infrastructure . Growth rates for Sichuan dropped to 4.6 % in the 2nd quarter but recovered to 9.5 % annual growth for the whole of 2008 . Major reconstruction efforts are still continuing after the May 12 earthquake , and are expected to last for at least three years . Despite closures and relocation of some factories because of the 2008 Summer Olympics , the games had a minor impact on Beijing 's overall economic growth . The Chinese economy is significantly affected by the 2008-9 global financial crisis due to the export oriented nature of the economy which depends heavily upon international trade . However , government economic-stimulus has been hugely successful by nearly all accounts
2008 South China floods
2008 South China floods
Economic history of China (1949–present)