By He Yin
China’s economic performance over the past year triggered broad discussion and commendation across the world. The country was the only major economy that secured positive growth in 2020, whose GDP for the first time crossed the 100 trillion yuan mark, rising 2.3 percent from a year ago.
International observers commented that China has consolidated its position as a key driver of global growth, and the country’s economy is likely to keep acting as a “locomotive” that fuels the recovery of global economy this year.
As the Davos Agenda of the World Economic Forum (WEF) is about to kick off and the world is seeking cooperation to fight COVID-19 and recover economy, China’s economy is injecting positive energy into the world, revitalizing the confidence of the global community to recover economy.
Hans-Paul Burkner, chairman of the Boston Consulting Group remarked that China’s v-shaped bounceback was not by accident or luck, and it represented the arduous efforts made by the Chinese people, enterprises and government departments.
The strong resilience and vitality of the Chinese economy came from the country’s efforts to coordinate pandemic prevention and control and economic and social development, which offered important experiences for the world to win the battle against the disease and secure economic performance.
The V-shaped recovery was engineered by getting Covid-19 under control and deploying fiscal and monetary stimulus to boost investment, said Bloomberg in a recent article. Experts from the International Monetary Fund also noted that China’s practices proved effective control measures could promote economic recovery, which is a great example for other countries to follow.
“Integration into the global economy is a historical trend. To grow its economy, China must have the courage to swim in the vast ocean of the global market.” The remarks made by Chinese President Xi Jinping when addressing the Opening Session of the WEF Annual Meeting four years ago in Davos, Switzerland, well explain why China secured outstanding economic performance last year.
Protectionism was on a rise after the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. China took a series of new measures to expand opening up, stabilize global industrial and supply chains and safeguard the open environment for international cooperation, which further improved its capability to achieve win-win results with the rest of the world.
In 2020, China’s foreign trade of goods went up by 1.9 percent from a year ago, and the freight trains running between the country and Europe made 12,406 trips, 50 percent more than those in 2019. Behind these figures is the energy China has injected to the world for the latter’s recovery. Achim Steiner, Administrator of the United Nations Development Programme noted China not only achieved its own development, but also build a new vision of future international cooperation and economic development.
In the new year, China has both the foundation and conditions to maintain economic recovery, and is bound to make greater contribution to global economic recovery and development. By further enhancing innovation, expanding domestic demand and comprehensively implementing reform and opening up measures, it is injecting confidence into the international society for economic development.
The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development forecasted that China will contribute to over 1/3 of global growth this year. Japanese news outlet Nikkei reported that thanks to China’s rapid economic recovery and thriving market demand, Japan’s manufacturers have constantly lifted their expectation for performance. Craig Allen, president of the U.S.-China Business Council (USCBC) said almost all members of the council saw China’s huge contribution to the world economy and were expanding their investment in the country.
Embarking on a new journey, China is accelerating the building of a new development paradigm, releasing market potential and opening wider to the world. It will definitely create more opportunities to share development with the rest of the world and strive for win-win cooperation.
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