Industrial What does air pollution tell us about industrial activity?

Adjusted* air pollution across China (a reflection of industrial activity) began to fall at the start of the outbreak.

21 Apr 2020
  • As of March 23, pollution in Guangdong province continued to decline steadily and was down 10% vs. a year earlier.
  • After bottoming in early February, pollution in Hubei has been rising and was down only 8% y/y in late March.

* Data as of March 23, 2020. Index is based on levels of PM 2.5 (fine particulate matter smaller than 2.5 microns), which are taken from various collection centers and aggregated to each provincial geography. The raw data is adjusted to remove the effects of winter heating, precipitation, and the shift in the Chinese New Year. It is also smoothed to removed volatility using the Kalman filter method.

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Guangdong: Adjusted* PM 2.5 Pollution Index – Change y/y

Source: UBS Evidence Lab, World Air Quality Index

Hubei: Adjusted* PM 2.5 Pollution Index – Change y/y

Source: UBS Evidence Lab, World Air Quality Index