China's high-quality development to have positive spillover effects

GUANGZHOU, China, April 20, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- China's pursuit of high-quality development will produce notable positive spillover effects for the global economy, facilitating trade and contributing to global decarbonization efforts, according to participants at an ongoing international forum in the southern Chinese city of Guangzhou.

The conference, Understanding China -- Greater Bay Area Dialogue, themed "Chinese modernization and new opportunities for the world" and scheduled from April 18 to 20, has attracted celebrated figures from the global political, academic and economic communities, from both home and abroad.

Fred Hu, chairman of Primavera Capital Group, said that China's high-quality development is of great significance to promoting production and foreign trade, and ensuring the security of the global supply chain.

"China's economic strength has improved significantly over 40 years of rapid growth, and now it has assumed an increasingly bigger role in the world economy," Hu said.

He cited the fact that China's gross domestic product accounted for 18.5 percent of the global total in 2021, much higher than the 7.7 percent registered in 2001.

Gordon Brown, former prime minister of the United Kingdom, also acknowledged China's contribution to the global economy, saying that the country's rapid growth is something that any Western finance minister "can only dream of".

Along with its economic takeoff, China has now become a major trading partner for more than 140 countries and regions, cementing its position as the largest country in global trade in goods, Hu noted.

The country's rise within the global trade system is supported not only by its big population, vast territory and large economic scale, but also its enabling business environment and institutional arrangements made in the form of trade agreements, Hu said.

Singapore's Emeritus Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong echoed Hu's words, predicting that ASEAN will seize the opportunities arising from China's continued growth by upgrading the ASEAN-China free-trade agreement.

A substantive upgrade to the agreement will pave the way for deeper regional economic integration and a stronger rules-based multilateral trading system, Goh said.

Looking forward, Hu said he believes that China's continuous efforts in expanding opening-up will boost the confidence of overseas businesses and forge more stable and sustainable trade and investment ties.

Another important part of China's high-quality development is green development, which Hu believes means achieving zero carbon emission goals as soon as possible and acting as a bellwether in addressing climate change.

Laurence Tubiana, chief executive officer of the European Climate Foundation, said that China is now a global champion of clean energy.

The country's pursuit of the dual carbon goals, its pace of deployment of renewable energy and the development of electrical vehicles are all very promising signs, Tubiana added.

"The world needs China to make decarbonization affordable, and that's what China has done in the past for a good number of clean energies," said Tubiana.

China should complete the energy transition at an early date, further consolidate its position as a global leader in climate change response and promote the sustainable development of the world, according to Hu.

To that end, China should leverage green technology, scale up support for decarbonization and green finance, and increase the share of renewables in the energy mix, Hu said.