Economist says leaders will likely tolerate growth below 6.5% Authorities have intensified anti-pollution drive this year Passengers wearing face masks walk through a subway station in Beijing, China, on Jan. 6. Photographer: Qilai Shen/Bloomberg China’s drive to cut pollution could reduce economic growth by 0.25 percentage point in the next six months while boosting factory inflation, according to Societe Generale SA. Production cuts to curb emissions and tougher nationwide environmental inspections will also support the profits of large industrial companies as producer prices rise, said Yao Wei, chief China economist at SocGen in Paris. She said the campaign will give a “notable supply shock” to the economy. “The Chinese government has turned very serious about fighting pollution,” Yao wrote in a note. It will be “more than a transitory objective for the current leadership. Modestly slower growth will be a necessary sacrifice for maintaining social stability over the medium […]