How Can China’s Economy Maintain Steady Growth at a Challenging Time?

China will continue to innovate and improve its macro-control policies to offset external uncertainties and strive to keep economic growth within a reasonable range, Premier Li Keqiang said when presiding over a meeting on Jan 15, attended by scholars and entrepreneurs on a draft version of the government work report. In recent years, there have been increasing voices claiming that China’s economic growth has already peaked after several years of rapid growth. There are also many factors pointing towards a range of risks set to appear in the near future. In addition, several new problems have emerged in the development of China’s economy both before and after the US-China trade war began. Confronted with the pressure of an economic downturn, what form will China’s future economic development take? And what is the driving force behind China’s sustained economic development? The Development of China’s Economy in 2018 On the one hand, China’s economy improved in terms of stability in 2018: profits across various industries and companies maintained a rather high rate of growth, while some industries with high profit growth drove the recovery of manufacturing investments. At the same time, signs of overheating in the real estate market have been alleviated. On the other hand, China’s economy has been affected by factors including household debt accumulation, widening income gaps and the […]

Jan 25, 2019

Shanghai FTZ: A Symbol of China’s Opening-up

Forty years ago, it was inconceivable that China could completely transform itself from agrarian-based to the world’s second largest economy in such a short period of time. However, it has drastically transformed through its commitment to continuous reforms and gradual opening up policies. In the last 40 years, China has witnessed the fastest economic growth in human history. Its average annual GDP growth was close to an impressive 10 percent year-on-year until 2014. Per-capita income increased from US$155 in 1978 to a whopping US$7,590 in 2014: a 40-fold increase, that helped lift 700 million people above the poverty line.   This economic transformation begun in 1978, when China’s former Leader, Deng Xiaoping realized that the economic progress of the country could be accelerated by opening up the economy and following the export-led model. In order to realize this dream, he had set up several special economic zones across China. These zones not just attracted overseas investments but also facilitated the adoption of new technologies and management ideas, thus transforming them into export hubs. This watershed policy of inclusive growth and opening-up proved to be a game-changer for the nation. In order to further deepen Deng’s original reforms, Shanghai’s first pilot free trade zone was set up in September 2013 to bring new opportunities to the country. The Shanghai FTZ, since […]

Dec 10, 2018