Chinese Premier Li Qiang struck a bullish tone on his country's economy during his address at the World Economic Forum's annual meeting at Davos, Switzerland, on Tuesday.
Once predicted to roar back after Beijing dropped its strict "zero-COVID" measures a year ago, the world's second-largest economy has had a shaky recovery amid declining exports, deflation, a housing market crisis, slowing growth worldwide, and weak domestic consumption.
Li said a broader view is needed to get a full picture of the Chinese economy, pointing out that China's GDP grew by 5.2 percent in 2023, as reported this week by China's National Bureau of Statistics.
Though modest compared with the astronomical figures seen over the past few decades, this figure exceeds earlier predictions by leading financial institutions and exceeded the country's annual target of 5 percent growth.
Economists believe China must consistently meet this threshold if it's to eventually overtake the U.S. as the world's top economic power.
Analysts and others with knowledge of the Chinese economy's inner workings have cast doubt on Beijing's GDP reports. Among these was Li Qiang's predecessor, the late Li Keqiang, who once dismissed the numbers as "man-made."
Li Qiang touted his country's role as a major economic driver worldwide, saying China had in recent years contributed to about one-third of global GDP growth.
"Just as a healthy person often has a strong immune system, the Chinese economy can handle ups and downs in its performance. The overall trend of long-term growth will not change," Li said.
The country also remains a leader in research and innovation, he said, ranking first in terms of talent pool size and total number of researchers.
Growth in China's high-tech sector has continued at double-digit rates, he said. Innovation is surging, on the back of emerging technologies like blockchain, cloud computing, big data and artificial intelligence, he added.
"China now has some 400,000 high-tech enterprises and ranks second globally in the number of unicorn companies," he said.
The term "unicorn" refers to a privately held startup company with a value of over $1 billion.
Li predicted that China's 400-million-strong middle class is expected to double in size over the next decade and boost overall global demand.
He pointed out China remains a major trading partner of more than 140 countries and regions and said the country had a 9 percent return on foreign direct investment over the past five years.
"Choosing the Chinese market is not a risk, but an opportunity," Li said. "We embrace investments from businesses of all countries with open arms, and will work tirelessly to foster a market-oriented, law-based and world-class business environment."
However, data published by (China's State Administration of Foreign Exchange) in November showed outward FDI exceeded inbound investment in the third quarter for the first time on record, amid geopolitical tensions, and raids of international firms on the heels of of China's new, vaguely worded anti-espionage law.
The Chinese Foreign Ministry didn't immediately respond to Newsweek's written request for comment.
Uncommon Knowledge
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
Micah McCartney is a reporter for Newsweek based in Taipei, Taiwan. He covers U.S.-China relations, East Asian and Southeast Asian ... Read more
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