Experts from Central Asian countries emphasized the importance of prioritizing the strategic partnership with China at a meeting held in Beijing on Thursday.

The expansion of cross-border transport corridors can bring enormous opportunities and contribute to the economic recovery of countries in the region, they said at the China-Central Asia Economic and Trade Governance Dialogue.

The dialogue attracted more than 10 experts and scholars from China and Central Asian countries, who jointly explored how regional economic and trade cooperation under the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) could move toward more sustainable development.

Afzal Askarovich Artikov, chief researcher at the Center for Economic Research and Reform under the Administration of the President of Uzbekistan, stated that the countries in Central Asia are China's tested partners and are willing to engage in sustainable dialogue with China, which is also in the interests of the people of the region.

"We should establish a closer China-Central Asia community with a shared destiny, ensure the security of transportation corridors and important strategic passages, establish long-term economic and trade cooperation plans, and enhance exchanges between think tanks," he said.

It is necessary to promote regional cooperation mechanisms, and there is also widespread anticipation for new economic dialogue platforms, he noted, adding that it is entirely possible for China-Central Asia trade volume to double by the end of 2030.

Artikov specifically mentioned the anticipation for the early completion of the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway.

In September 2022, China, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan signed a memorandum of understanding on cooperation on the Kyrgyz section of the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway, making significant headway in the construction of a transport corridor in the Eurasian continent, the Xinhua News Agency reported.

Meanwhile, the China-Europe freight trains through Central Asia, the China-Kazakhstan Horgos International Frontier Cooperation Center, and the China-Kazakhstan International Logistics Base in the eastern Chinese port of Lianyungang have all helped open the door to global markets for Central Asian countries.

The projects have not only promoted commercial activities among the six countries, but also brought people living in the region closer through cultural and people-to-people exchanges.

Zhang Jianping, senior researcher ofthe Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation, stated that China's free trade pilot zones, such as the Xinjiang Pilot Free Trade Zone and the China-Kazakhstan Horgos International Frontier Cooperation Center, should be utilized to leverage the effects of capacity, capital, and talent aggregation.

Over the past 10 years since the proposal of the BRI, the Horgos Port has been integrated into the core area of the Silk Road Economic Belt, continuously enhancing its level of openness, and expanding economic and trade cooperation with countries and regions along the BRI.

As the first cross-border economic and trade cooperation zone established by China with other countries, the China-Kazakhstan Horgos International Frontier Cooperation Center has attracted nearly 30 key projects in areas such as star-rated hotels, catering and entertainment, commercial facilities, and financial services, with over 3,500 registered merchants. It has become an important platform for economic and trade exchanges and cultural exchanges between China and Kazakhstan.

Kazakhstan and China officially implemented a visa-free policy on October 10, and the flow of people at the center continues to rise.

Zhang also emphasized that the potential for economic and trade cooperation between China and Central Asian countries has not been fully tapped. The five Central Asian countries and China can effectively improve the business environment and enhance the level of free trade by promoting and integrating with each other under the BRI framework

Yersultan Zhanseitov, head of the Chinese and Asian Studies Program at the Institute of World Economics and Politics, Kazakhstan, said he values the trans-Caspian international transportation corridor and the visa-free policy between China and Kazakhstan. Kazakhstan has not seen the same level of development speed and scale with any other country as it has with China, he noted.

According to an official announcement made in October at the third Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation, China will participate in the construction of the trans-Caspian international transportation corridor, and collaborate on a new logistics corridor across the Eurasian continent linked by direct railway and road transportation.

Zhanseitov said he expects reinvigoration of the China-Kazakhstan Horgos International Frontier Cooperation Center following the pandemic, as it is China's gateway to the five Central Asian countries.

Li Jinfeng, executive director of the SCO Research Center and deputy secretary-general of Council on China Russia Strategic Partnership of Coordination at Chinese Academy of Social Science, stated that China's engagement with Central Asian countries is not like that of Western countries as China always hopes to understand the real needs of Central Asian countries and consider what China can offer accordingly. This was also reflected in this year's China-Central Asia Summit in Xi'an.

Central Asia countries were among the first to sign up to the BRI and they have been early beneficiaries of the initiative. This is because the BRI aligns with the development strategies of these five countries, such as Kazakhstan's "Bright Path" new economic policy, National Development Strategyof Tajikistan, and Turkmenistan's Revival of the Silk RoadStrategy, Li said.

The dialogue was hosted by the China Forum, Center for International Security and Strategy at Tsinghua University and the China Center for Contemporary World Studies.

Japan's central bank moved on Tuesday to raise the benchmark interest rate for the first time since 2007. The hike calls an end to the eight-year negative interest rate in Japan, which has been suffering from protracted deflation.

In a widely anticipated move, the Bank of Japan (BOJ) raised its short-term interest rates to around 0 percent to 0.1 percent from -0.1 percent, according to the bank's statement following a two-day policy meeting. 

The central bank also abandoned yield curve control (YCC), a policy which had been in place since 2016 that capped long-term interest rates around or even below zero.

In response to the adjustment, major stock indexes in Japan rallied on the Tuesday. The Nikkei 225 closed Tuesday, up 0.66 percent, while the Tokyo Stock Price Index rose by 1.06 percent.

The BOJ said that it assessed the "virtuous cycle" between wages and prices, realizing that the price stability target of 2 percent rise would be attained this year. 

The year-on-year rate of increase in the country's CPI is likely to come in at above 2 percent this year, the bank said.

The Japan's largest labor union organization, Rengo, announced Friday that it has reached an agreement for a 5.3-percent annual wage increase in spring wage negotiations, which is 1.5 percentage points higher than last year and the largest salary increase in 30 years.

As Japan's rising wages are expected to lead to positive growth in spending and consumer prices, it is necessary for tighten the country's monetary policy now, Zhao Qingming, a Beijing-based veteran financial analyst told the Global Times on Tuesday.

Overall, the impact on China is not expected to be significant as Japan's rate hike is relatively cautious, Zhao said.

Chen Zilei, director of the Research Center for Japanese Economics at Shanghai University of International Business and Economics, told the Global Times on Tuesday that Japan's rate hike would not significantly affect the Chinese economy. 

Chen dismissed concerns that the return of overseas money to Japan would produce a significant impact on China's economy.

The BOJ cautioned that it's not about to embark on aggressive rate hikes, saying that it "anticipates that accommodative financial conditions will be maintained for the time being."

Fitch Ratings said it expects the BOJ to raise the interest rates at a very gradual pace, possibly reaching 0.25 percent at the end of 2025, according to its Global Economic Outlook for March sent to the Global Times. The international rating agency anticipates the Japanese economy will grow by 0.6 percent in 2024.

An exhibition area for advanced manufacturing will be added to the second China International Supply Chain Expo (CISCE), aiming to boost new quality productive forces. So far, more than 160 enterprises from home and abroad have confirmed their participation in the expo, the Global Times learned on Friday.

The second CISCE is scheduled to be held from November 26 to 30 in Beijing, and preparatory work is already in full swing, said Ren Hongbin, chairman of the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT), which is the organizer of the expo, on Friday evening at an event named "Networking Reception of the Second CISCE."

"After research, we decided to add an exhibition area for the advanced manufacturing chain. This is an important innovation of the second CISCE," Ren said.

In 2023, the first CISCE showcased five major supply chains: the intelligent vehicle chain, the green agriculture chain, the cleaner energy chain, the digital technology chain, and the healthy life chain.

According to Ren, the newly added advanced manufacturing chain exhibition area will focus on new quality productive forces and display the whole industrial chain in an all-round and multi-angle way, from front-end research and development (R&D), application of new materials and processing of key parts to intelligent manufacturing. Products such as industrial automation, robots, advanced equipment, high-end equipment and construction machinery will be displayed.

Participants at the Friday event said that the industrial chain and supply chain are the "blood vessel system" of economic development. Consolidating and strengthening global industrial chain and supply chain cooperation is in the interests of all parties, the Global Times learned.

Through exchanges by the upper, middle and lower reaches of the supply chain, and the integration of large, small and medium-sized enterprises, the CISCE can help enterprises find supply chain partners globally, and also help them to apply the latest scientific research achievements to all links of the industrial chain, Director General of CCPIT Academy Zhao Ping told the Global Times on Friday on the sidelines of the event.

"Therefore, all links of the supply chain - from R&D, production, distribution and logistics to consumption - can complement each other, and promote the high-quality development of the manufacturing industry," said Zhao.

The security, stability and smooth cooperation of the global supply chain is indeed the concern of the business communities of all countries, Lin Shunjie, chairman of the China International Exhibition Center Group, the co-organizer of the CISCE, told the Global Times on Friday.

"The supply chain expo, the first of its kind in the world, aims to provide cooperation opportunities between global enterprises and help enterprises develop partners alongside the supply chain," said Lin.

Many multinationals that did not attend the first CISCE expressed their willingness to attend the second edition this year. Some previous participants have asked to increase their exhibition area, Lin said.

"Apart from enterprises from the US and European countries, companies from Latin America, Japan and Southeast Asia are contacting us, hoping to attend the second CISCE," Lin noted, adding that last year during the first expo, US enterprises took up 45 percent of the exhibition area for overseas enterprises.

Ren also mentioned that executives of the world's top 500 companies such as Budweiser, Novo Nordisk, Procter & Gamble, HSBC and CMA CGM have expressed their desire to participate in the second CISCE.

But Lin also noted that since the exhibition area is limited, they will be strict in choosing participants. "We just started building a new convention complex to accommodate more enterprises," Lin added.

The first CISCE concluded in December 2023 with about 200 business deals and cooperation agreements signed, worth more than 150 billion yuan ($21 billion), the Global Times learned from CCPIT.

The first expo attracted 515 domestic and foreign exhibitors. Approximately 26 percent of the exhibitors were from overseas, representing 55 countries and regions. US and European firms accounted for 36 percent of overseas exhibitors.

China remains the largest contributor to the World Intellectual Property Organization's (WIPO) patent cooperation treaty (PCT) system for international patents registration, with Huawei Technologies registering 6,494 published PCT applications in 2023, according to the official WeChat account of the United Nations on Wednesday.

The latest data from the WIPO showed the number of international patent applications by Chinese innovators through the PCT system has ranked first in the world, as overall international registrations of IP via WIPO softened slightly, and China and the US remained as the world's top users of WIPO's patent system in 2023.

In 2023, there were a total of 69,610 PCT filings from China, among the total number of 272,600 globally, accounting for about 25 percent, WIPO said. Though a small decrease of 0.6 percent from the previous year, China continued to be the top origin of PCT applications. The US came in second with 55,678 applications, representing a 5.3 percent drop year-on-year.

Innovation activity keeps expanding despite rising interest rates and economic uncertainty, the WIPO said on March 7, and filings through WIPO's PCT system dropped 1.8 percent, marking a first decline in 14 years.

"Applications in the international trademark system fell 7 percent while use of the international design system bucked the trends to grow by 1 percent with expanded activity by China," it said.

"Higher interest rates and economic uncertainties cast a shadow on innovation activity in 2023. But declining inflation rates forecast for 2024 and hotspots like India, Southeast Asia and beyond may provide more business confidence and innovation investments, setting the stage for a recovery in international IP fillings later this year," said WIPO Director General Daren Tang.

The world's innovation hub is shifting eastward as well. Countries in Asia represented 55.7 percent of international patent applications via WIPO last year, up from 40.5 percent one decade ago, the official noted.

Apart from the WIPO's PCT, China also holds leading positions in the Madrid and Hague systems for international IP registrations. By the end of 2023, China had set a new global benchmark with 4.99 million valid invention patents, including 4.01 million domestic patents, making it the first country to surpass 4 million valid domestic invention patents, according to China National Intellectual Property Administration.

China attaches great importance to international patent cooperation and intellectual property protection. Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said at a press briefing in January that in the 30 years since joining the PCT, China has actively participated in the revision and improvement of international rules such as those of the PCT and continuously improved the domestic IP legal system, while carrying out fruitful cooperation with the WIPO.

"IP is an important source of support for innovative development. With the support of patented technology, China has continuously improved its IP quality and efficiency to accelerate innovation," Wang noted.

The work report of the Standing Committee of the 14th National People's Congress (NPC), China's top legislature, on Friday pledged to accelerate the formation of a law aimed at promoting the development of the private sector, sending a strong, fresh signal on policymakers' commitment to making continuous improvements in the business environment and boosting the high-quality development of the private sector for Chinese modernization.

Deputies and entrepreneurs said the legislative work will better build a fair, law-based and orderly business environment, resolve the challenges faced by private enterprises, and spark their endogenous motivating power and vitality for the accelerated development of new quality productive forces.

While the law is an implementation of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee's commitment to unswervingly encouraging, supporting and guiding the development of the non-public sector of the economy, the Party's clear and vigorous support for the private sector is also a strong rebuttal to some Western media outlets' claims that China is squeezing the private economy.

"Work must be done to support the growth of the private sector and private enterprises and spur the intrinsic impetus and innovative vigor of various business entities," Chinese President Xi Jinping said on Tuesday when he participated in a deliberation with fellow lawmakers from East China's Jiangsu Province during the second session of the 14th NPC, the Xinhua News Agency reported.

It is necessary to accelerate the improvement of underlying institutions in areas such as property rights protection, market access, fair competition and social credit to build a high-standard socialist market economy system, he said.

Meanwhile, this year's Government Work Report again stressed that state-owned enterprises, private businesses, and foreign-funded companies all play an important role in China's modernization drive. "We will strive to create a sound environment in which enterprises under all forms of ownership can compete and grow on a level playing field," it noted. 

Enhanced confidence
The encouraging words from this year's two sessions for the country's private businesses have reverberated through the vast private sector, with many companies and entrepreneurs vowing to strive to achieve tech innovations and sound development to serve the country's goal of high-quality development.

"The law is important for the development of the private sector, as it will inject confidence into and boost the regulation and protection of private enterprises," Wang Yu, chairman and president of Spring Airlines and a member of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), told the Global Times on Friday.

The law should ensure equal treatment of private and state-owned enterprises and fair competition in terms of market entry, distribution of resources and fund-raising so as to stimulate the vitality of various market entities for their healthy development, he said.

"The Government Work Report has attached great importance to private tech firms, and mentioned it will reinforce the principal role of enterprises in scientific and technological innovation. This made me deeply feel the nation's support for private enterprises' development," Zhou Hongyi, founder and chairman of 360 Security Technology and a member of the National Committee of the CPPCC, told the Global Times. 

We private tech companies will live up to the mission by leading tech innovation such as artificial intelligence, in order to become a major force in developing new quality productive forces and inject more impetus into our country's high-quality economic development, Zhou said.

Liu Yonghao, a member of the National Committee of the CPPCC and chairman of New Hope Group, said he has noticed related government agencies' efforts to help private businesses, noting that the upcoming law will play an active role in boosting private enterprises' high-quality development.

Chinese private businesses have continually made progress in recent years, while also making many contributions to the country's development. For example, a batch of international leaders have emerged in China in sectors such as new-energy vehicles, helping the made-in-China brands go global, Liu told the Global Times.

Economic experts and the media frequently use a combination of the numbers 50, 60, 70 and 80 to describe the private sector's contributions to the Chinese economy. The private sector contributes more than 50 percent of the country's tax revenue, over 60 percent of its GDP, more than 70 percent of its technological innovation, and provides over 80 percent of its urban employment, official data showed.

Amid factors including a sluggish global economy and an increasingly complex external environment, Chinese private enterprises now face some challenges. The revival of private companies and the improvement of private entrepreneurs' sentiment are crucial for China's high-quality development, as the private sector has been a key pillar sustaining China's economic expansion and is expected to be a pioneer of innovative development, analysts said.

Unswerving support

China has long attached great importance to the private sector, encouraging it to play a bigger role in stabilizing growth and promoting structural adjustments and innovation.

Over the past year, the authorities introduced an array of targeted policies to shore up the growth of the private sector. In July 2023, the Communist Party of China Central Committee and the State Council jointly issued guidelines on boosting the growth of the private sector, promising to improve its business environment, enhance policy support, and strengthen legal guarantees for its development.

In September, the authorities set up a bureau under the National Development and Reform Commission to ensure policy coordination and implementation to create a better environment and ramp up support for the growth of the private sector.

China should lift some institutional obstacles to further optimize the investment environment for the country's private sector in order to stimulate the market vitality for investment, while ensuring domestic firms feel safe investing funds, Yin Yanlin, deputy director of the General Office of the Central Financial and Economic Affairs Commission and a member of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) National Committee, told the Global Times.

Yin suggested expanding investment space for private enterprises by effectively breaking down the invisible barriers that hinder investment entry. As examples, he cited leaving public welfare projects with certain revenue to the private business market, and expanding the range of trial for real estate investment trusts (REITs) to private-owned companies, hotel and tourism projects.

"2024 is an important year to transform. It provides an important opportunity for Chinese companies to push the transformation," Denis Depoux, Global Managing Director at Roland Berger, told the Global Times, urging companies to take action.

There are three key drivers of China's future development, namely industrial modernization, energy transition and decarbonization, and transformation of domestic consumption. All three levers are highly transformational and will require a combination of investment, technology, knowledge and know how, Depoux said.

Many companies will start to review, decide and formulate new strategies, as the 15th Five-Year Plan will steer the overall direction for coming years. Companies need to bravely step out of the "wait-and-see" approach, face the changes and start to take concrete actions to implement the transformation to prepare themselves to better fit into the future and support the economy, he said.

Whether the Chinese economy needs a stronger stimulus to achieve its growth target this year has become a focus of attention for some Western media outlets, especially after the Government Work Report was submitted to the national legislature for deliberation on Tuesday.

With relatively weak fiscal stimulus, it will be challenging for the economy to meet its 2024 growth target of about 5 percent, a report from the Chinese edition of VOA said on Tuesday. The report noted that it remains uncertain whether future fiscal stimulus spending will be strong enough to overcome difficulties like "sluggish consumption, a property bubble and the local debt crisis."

According to the Government Work Report unveiled at the opening meeting of the second session of the 14th National People's Congress, the nation's proactive fiscal policy and prudent monetary policy will continue in 2024, with enhanced consistency of the macro policy orientation. 

China has set a deficit-to-GDP ratio for this year at 3 percent, meaning that the deficit is expected to reach 4.06 trillion yuan ($560 billion), an increase of 180 billion yuan from the deficit target for 2023 set at the beginning of last year.

The Western media's conclusion that the 3 percent deficit-to-GDP ratio is relatively weak stimulus is actually a hint of Western pessimism about the Chinese economy. Usually, only greater economic challenges call for a larger-scale fiscal stimulus.

However, while the deficit-to-GDP ratio is an important indicator of a government's fiscal policy strength, it cannot fully represent China's fiscal expansion or stimulus. 

This year's deficit ratio target is slightly lower than the adjusted deficit ratio of 3.8 percent last year, caused by the issuance of an additional 1 trillion yuan in special-purpose treasury bonds. But it is arbitrary to simply view the fiscal support for the economy as inadequate, because there are other policy tools that can be used to support the economy.

A steady and appropriate deficit ratio is in line with the overall recovery of the economy, sending a positive signal to the outside world and showing confidence that China can handle problems at its own pace.

The Chinese economy is entering a critical period of transitioning toward high-quality development. During the process, it is inevitable for the economy to encounter problems and challenges, especially amid a complicated and volatile international environment. But that doesn't change China's long-term economic fundamentals, which remain resilient and are full of positive factors.

Last year, China's GDP grew 5.2 percent year-on-year, higher than the estimated global growth rate of about 3 percent, contributing more than 30 percent of the world's economic growth. Although some countries have been promoting a "decoupling" strategy to contain China's technological development, they cannot stop China's pace of technological innovation and industrial upgrading.

China is gradually transforming from a pattern of traditional manufacturing to high value-added, high-tech sectors, with the digital economy and green and low-carbon industries developing vigorously. In 2023, led by new-energy vehicles, China overtook Japan as the world's largest car exporter for the first time.

No matter how hard some Western media outlets play up the "China collapse" theory, the fact that the Chinese economy can maintain its recovery momentum and achieve its annual growth target despite negative factors at home and abroad is the best proof that its economic development remains stable and resilient.

In this context, simply measuring China's stimulus for economic growth in terms of the deficit ratio is clearly a misunderstanding of the Chinese economy. Whether it is fiscal policy, monetary policy or structural reform, the ultimate goal of policy measures is to support targeted economic transformation and effectively stabilize economic growth, rather than create extra risks with excessive stimulus.

It is normal to see people come and go, yet Hong Kong never lost its sheen to international talents, nor is the city’s global role dwindling, said deputies to the 14th National People's Congress (NPC), China's national legislature, refuting foreign media’s hype that “brain drain” is threatening the city’s status as an international financial hub.

Hong Kong's economy is still very popular internationally, with over 9,000 companies operating in the city. However, in terms of talent, mobility is quite common. Many foreign talents come to Hong Kong, as well as talented people from Chinese mainland, Ken Wong Kam-leung, a deputy to the National People's Congress and chairman of the Hong Kong Federation of Education Workers, told the Global Times on Wednesday.

His comment aim to refute the hype from some Western media, such as Bloomberg, which claimed that Hong Kong is suffering from brain drain, which is threatening its status as an international financial hub. 
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-04-08/china-applicants-make-up-95-of-hong-kong-talent-visa-approvals?sref=CtPNqsCb 

Some foreign media outlets also reported that talented people are hesitant to work and live in Hong Kong, and claimed there could be an exodus of talented people from the city.

“We have always had people coming in and going out, and we are delighted to see that our talent program is very popular,” Starry Lee Wai-king, a Hong Kong member of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress, told the Global Times. She believes that Hong Kong will continue to launch different programs to attract different talents, to contribute to the development of the city, as well as the country. 

Wang Wenbin, the Foreign Ministry spokesperson, also slammed such reports in January. According to official statistics, from mid-2022 to mid-2023, the net population inflow into Hong Kong was 174,000, debunking the claim of the so-called "talent exodus," Wang said.

From January to November 2023, the HKSAR government received more than 200,000 applications through various talent attraction programs, of which over 120,000 have been approved, exceeding the 80,000 people who quit jobs during the period – with the difference being bigger than the city's annual plan of attracting at least 35,000 skilled workers.

The deputies also highlighted the importance of exchange between people in Hong Kong and the mainland. Lee said she is thrilled to see the frenzy of Hong Kong residents "tripping north" to Shenzhen.

According to the latest data from the Hong Kong SAR Immigration Department issued in January, as of December 30, 2023, there were 53.34 million trips made by Hong Kong residents "heading north" throughout the year, with over 40 million departing through the Shenzhen-Hong Kong port.

Hong Kong media reports said that unlike before 2019, Shenzhen has now taken the lead in this cross-border city pair, as the consumption pattern of Hongkongers in Shenzhen gradually shifted from leisurely spending to everyday purchase, from dining and entertainment to medical check-ups, grocery shopping and even real estate purchases.

Now is the best time to promote patriotic education to people in Hong Kong, because whether it is traveling, shopping, or working in the mainland, representatives of Hong Kong people are very fond of exploring and understanding the real situation in the mainland, said Lee. 

She believes it’s also important to roll out preferential policies, such as optimizing visa application, to attract people from the mainland to visit Hong Kong. 

After COVID, the Hong Kong government has been working hard to catch up. Now there are many grand events and activities being organized to boost tourism, said Lee, noting that the city still needs to provide more new experiences, innovative products and possibly better services in order to attract more tourists.

The 14th National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), China's top political advisory body, kicked off its second session on Monday, marking the start of the annual two sessions. The second session of the 14th National People's Congress (NPC), the country's top legislature, is set to open on Tuesday.

This year's political gatherings carry extra weight for the Chinese economy, as 2024 will be a crucial year for the realization of the goals and tasks of the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25), and the new government is set to submit its Government Work Report to the NPC annual session for deliberation for the first time.

The session usually reviews past achievements and sets development targets for the current year and beyond.

At a time when mainstream Western media outlets are flooded with reports of China grappling with various difficulties - deflation, a property crisis, mounting debt burdens and a foreign capital exodus - the two sessions will serve as a crucial window for the world to observe the country's economic development and understand its policy direction for the year ahead, which Western media outlets said investors are watching closely for signals of a "bazooka-like stimulus." 

It's not unusual to see Western media outlets run bearish reports badmouthing the Chinese economy around the major political event every year. For instance, a report published by the Financial Times on February 27, 2023, was headlined "The implications of China's mid-income trap," while CNN ran an article entitled "China's economy had a surprisingly good start to the year, but it may not last" in March 2022.

Yet, China still accomplished its 2023 GDP growth target despite downward pressure and challenges, and the underlying trends of a rebound in the economy and long-term growth remain unchanged. Such economic fundamentals further prove that the ill-intentioned "China collapse" theory cannot withstand the test of time.

Why have Western predictions about a hard landing for the Chinese economy never come true? The key lies in the inability to understand that China's economic development has its own rhythm and policy direction, which will not be influenced by Western hype. The reason why the two sessions are of great importance to China's economy is not only because of the GDP target issued during the meetings, but also because of the policy direction set for achieving stable economic development in the year ahead.

There is no denying that China's GDP target has been the focus of world attention, which is not surprising given its huge economic size and important implications for the global economy. The Chinese government has always stressed the importance of the quality of economic development, rather than just the growth rate, but GDP, as a major measure of a country's economic strength, is still one of the most important economic metrics in China. 

It is true that China's economic growth has slowed in recent years amid unprecedented and complicated domestic and external market challenges. This is mainly because the economy is undergoing a period of adjustment and transformation. Despite the difficulties and downward pressure, China is still on a solid footing and its GDP growth rate remains relatively fast among the world's major economies. 

If anything, China's consistent economic performance over the years is the best proof that it has the ability to transform its economy while maintaining growth momentum.

During China's two sessions, much attention is often paid to the country's GDP growth target. However, it is crucial to look beyond mere numbers and understand the implications of new policies and measures to be implemented by the Chinese government to address economic challenges. Because the policy direction not only promises positive influence on China's economic prospects, but also presents opportunities in the country's future development.

The Chinese economy is resilient, has huge potential and vitality and its growth momentum will continue to strengthen and lead to a bright future, according to a spokesperson for the Second Session of the 14th National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC).

Economic issues have been a focal point for political advisors ahead of the gathering, and it is the opinion of all political advisors that in 2023 the Chinese economy withstood the external pressure and overcome internal difficulties, and the economy has been on a general recovery track, according to Liu Jieyi, spokesperson for the second session of the 14th CPPCC National Committee.

There is a good foundation and favorable conditions for promoting high-quality development and the long-term positive economic trend will continue to be consolidated and strengthened, Liu said, responding to a question about the current status of the Chinese economy.

Solid progress has been made in achieving major social and economic growth targets, high-quality development and Chinese way of modernization in 2023, Liu said.

The CPPCC held quarterly seminars on the country's macroeconomic situation and in-depth consultations on the stable operation of the overall economy, with topics ranging from fiscal, monetary, employment and headline economic policies, and provide suggestions and strategies to stabilize market expectations and boost investor confidence, according to Liu.

Biweekly consultations meetings were held on fostering the high-quality development across the financial sector and promote the stable and sound development of the property sector and field trips were made to promote the high-quality development of the private economy, strengthen the digital transformation of small and medium-sized enterprises, and improve the resilience and safety level of the industrial and supply chains.

The CPPCC also arranged study trips to small and medium-sized banks to help tackle the risks of smaller financial institutions and provide advice on implementing the task mapped by during the Central Economic Work Conference held in December.

Its suggestions on fostering new-quality productive forces were highly valued and in many cases adopted by relevant government departments, Liu said.

The second session of the 14th National Committee of the CPPCC will begin on March 4.

China's economy grew 5.2 percent year-on-year in 2023, finishing above last year's official GDP target of around 5 percent, and underscoring the resilience and potential of the Chinese economy in the post-COVID-19 era.

Escalating US trade protectionism, and its behavior of politicizing economic issues and erecting more trade barriers to affect fair competition, will only harm the development of its own auto industry in the long run, He Yadong, a spokesperson of China's Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM), said on Thursday.

Chinese cars are popular in the global market because of their innovative features and high quality rather than alleged low-price dumping, He said, responding to a question over media reports saying that the Alliance for American Manufacturing had asked the US government to block the import of low-cost Chinese automobiles and auto parts from Mexico.

In addition, a Reuters report said on Wednesday that Republican US Senator Josh Hawley has introduced legislation to hike tariffs on Chinese vehicle imports amid so-called concerns about the potential competitive impact on American car companies.

In recent years, the US side has erected barriers to thwart Chinese car imports, like levying additional tariffs, excluding Chinese car brands from US government procurement and implementing discriminatory subsidy policies, He said.

While the US erects barriers to hinder Chinese carmakers, China is always open to carmakers from across the world, He said. 

US carmakers have fully enjoyed the dividends of China's huge market, with the sales volume of American brands far outpacing Chinese brands in the US. Protectionism by the US will only hinder its own auto industry's development in the long run, He said.

The MOFCOM spokesperson urged the US to respect the rules of the market economy and the principle of fair competition while correcting its non-market practices in order to build a fair environment for the long-term development of the auto industry.

The EU has also stepped up trade protectionism against Chinese automobiles, and recently, the EU's antitrust regulator launched an investigation into Chinese trainmaker CRRC Qingdao Sifang Locomotive, a subsidiary of CRRC Corp, the world's biggest producer of rolling stock.

Cui Dongshu, secretary-general of the China Passenger Car Association, told the Global Times that the protectionist moves of the US and EU violate the WTO principle of fairness, and robust exports of Chinese new-energy vehicles (NEVs) reflect the strong international competitiveness of China's industry chains rather than so-called subsidies.

In China, the subsidy granted to NEVs was completely phased out as of the end of 2022. In order to maintain fair competition, provinces across China were required to stop subsidies for NEVs starting from 2018, and subsequently, national subsidies were phased out in an orderly fashion, Cui said.

Cui is positive about the development of China's NEV sector on the back of its strong innovation capability, complete manufacturing system and strong supply chains.

China's vehicle exports surged 57.9 percent year-on-year to a record of 4.91 million in 2023 as the country's automakers expanded their presence overseas, according to data from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers.

China-US economic and trade cooperation is a stabilizing force in bilateral relations. The Chinese side is willing to join hands with the US to implement the important consensus reached at the San Francisco meeting between the two heads of state to jointly promote the steady and healthy development of China-US economic and trade relations, Chinese Vice Commerce Minister Wang Shouwen said when meeting with a US Chamber of Commerce delegation led by the chamber's President and CEO Suzanne Clark in Beijing on Tuesday.

China will unswervingly promote high-level opening-up and it is hoped that member companies of the US Chamber of Commerce will continue to be deeply rooted in the Chinese market and achieve win-win development, Wang said.