China has been seeing economic recovery and growth, and the fundamentals that sustain the long-term growth of the world’s second-largest economy remain unchanged, Chinese Ambassador to the United States Xie Feng has said.
In an article titled “The Chinese economy is doing better than you might think,” which appeared in The Washington Post on Thursday, Xie dismissed some recent headlines about the Chinese economy by sharing some facts about its performance.
China’s gross domestic product expanded 5.5 percent in the first half of the year, outpacing most major economies. The World Bank has projected China’s economy to grow at 5.6 percent in 2023, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development expects 5.4 percent, and the International Monetary Fund projects 5.2 percent growth.
Citing these data, Xie said, “As it has for many years, China remains a most important engine of global growth.”
China’s middle-income group – more than 400 million people now – is on a path to exceed 800 million by 2035, he added.
As China continues to upgrade consumption, ease market access, optimize the business environment and strengthen supply and industrial chains, the fundamentals sustaining its long-term growth remain unchanged, he stressed.
Consumption highlights growth
The Chinese ambassador said that one of the highlights of China’s economy in the first half of 2023 is the rebound in consumption, which contributed 77.2 percent of the growth, more than 44 percentage points higher than last year.
“Notably, people are spending more on services,” he said. From January to July, retail sales in transport, accommodation, catering and other services grew 20.3 percent year on year, he added.
“Some 502 million Chinese went to the movies this summer – more than the entire U.S. population,” he said.
Greener growth
China’s economy is also significantly greener and more innovation-driven than in the past, said Xie.
In the first seven months of 2023, investment in high-tech industries and research and technical services rose 11.5 percent and 23.1 percent, respectively, he said.
In July, the output of new energy vehicles, wind turbines and charging facilities all increased roughly by one-fourth, said Xie.
China’s renewable energy generation capacity has overtaken its coal-power capacity, and its installed capacity of wind and solar power has topped the world for 13 and eight years, respectively, added the Chinese diplomat.
Foreign trade and investment
In the article, Xie also highlighted China’s resilient foreign trade and attractions for international investment.
China continues to take up about 14 percent of the global export market while its exports of electric vehicles, lithium-ion batteries and solar cells surged 61.6 percent in the first six months of 2023, he said.
As demand continues to revive domestically, China will also import more, Xie projected.
“International businesses have voted with their feet,” he wrote. “While transnational investment is lackluster globally, investment in China from overseas continues.”
France, Britain, Japan and Germany boosted investment in China in the first half of 2023 by 173.3 percent, 135.3 percent, 53 percent and 14.2 percent, respectively, he noted.
Xie added that some 24,000 new foreign-invested firms were established in China in the same period, up by 35.7 percent year on year.
He said half of Tesla’s global deliveries came from its Shanghai gigafactory last year, which rolls out one electronic vehicle every 40 seconds on average, and Starbucks now operates more than 6,500 stores in China, opening one nearly every nine hours.
On China-U.S. relations
Noting that more Americans have come to realize that the notion that China could economically collapse and America will still thrive is “utter fantasy,” Xie urged the U.S. to lift technology export controls, investment restrictions, economic sanctions and high tariffs against China.
“It must stop building parallel systems and seeking to decouple in the name of ‘de-risking,’ which would only further complicate an already arduous global recovery,” he said.
Instead, China and the United States should respect each other, coexist in peace and pursue win-win cooperation, he urged. “This is the only way forward. And the world expects no less.”
(Cover: People walk past film posters outside a cinema in the Yubei District of Chongqing, southwest China, July 30, 2023. /Xinhua)
