By Wang Fengjuan, Liao Bowen
“The Chinese economy is a sea, not a pond.” “Storms can overturn a pond, but never a sea.” This is probably the most vivid metaphor for the economy by Chinese President Xi Jinping at the opening ceremony of the first China International Import Expo on November 5, 2018.
“In accordance with President Xi’s metaphor, from an economical perspective, China is already a huge market, and it will naturally form a globally strong buyer power.” Associate Dean of the Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences and Director of the Institute of Applied Economics Gan Chunhui said as he pays a close attention to the import expo. In his view, Xi’s speech expressed his confidence in China’s economic prospects. In terms of trade policy, China is gradually shifting from an export-oriented market in the past few decades to an import-export trade balance.
In regards to the opportunities and challenges brought by the new round of scientific and technological revolution and industrial transformation, Gan Chunhui said: “The Expo signifies that more foreign competitors will be introduced into the Chinese market, which will lead firms to seek competitive advantage, and will also help promoting the supply side structure of the market, encouraging local companies to improve product quality and promote technological progress.”
“As President Xi proposed, the Expo will not only be held on an annual basis, but will also feature good performance, fruitful results and continued success in the years to come, China’s imports in the fields of goods, technology and services still need a longer-term, more top-level design, but this year’s expo can be a wonderful start.” Gan Chunhui said.
China Report ASEAN 