Analysis - China currency move nails hard landing risk coffin

BEIJING (Reuters) - China's weekend reform of its currency regime nails shut the cof

BEIJING (Reuters) - China's weekend reform of its currency regime nails shut the coffin on the last remains of doubt about whether the world's second biggest economy has successfully steered a course past a hard economic landing.

BEIJING (Reuters) - China's weekend reform of its currency regime nails shut the coffin on the last remains of doubt about whether the world's second biggest economy has successfully steered a course past a hard economic landing.

Whoever emerges the winner in America's presidential election today will have at least one thing in his favour: a global economy looking less fragile than it did just six months ago. A global purchasing managers' index compiled by J.P. Morgan has hooked up in recent months (see the nearby chart), and if previous patterns prevail, industrial production should soon follow. Don't get carried away; this is no runaway rebound.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Political instability in emerging markets, led by China, will be one of the biggest risks for markets in 2013, Ian Bremmer, president of political risk firm Eurasia Group, said on Monday.

In spite of ongoing stream of positive economic news out of China, a number of economists have been ringing alarm bells with respect to the nation's economic trajectory. China clearly faces some major challenges, but the question remains if the country is still at risk of a "hard landing". Here are some of the issues that keep China-focused economists and portfolio managers awake at night.

Via Wei Yao of Societe Generale, Imagine a hard landing in China... The Chinese economy has been enjoying a cyclical rebound since the beginning of Q4 2012. SocGen's central scenario is that this recovery will last until early Q2 2013 and then gradually lose momentum. In the medium term, they still anticipate a bumpy path of secular deceleration, leading to an average growth rate of 6-7% over the next five to seven years, down from 10% per annum over the last three decades.

BEIJING (Reuters) - China has made significant and promising reforms to its currency regime that will lead