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Ji Siqi

Frank Tang

Frank Chen

Chinese Premier Li Qiang delivered a speech during the opening plenary session at the 15th Annual Meeting of the New Champions in Dalian on Tuesday.
This year’s forum, which is also known as the Summer Davos, will feature the theme “Next Frontiers for Growth”.
Follow our live coverage of the opening session as it unfolded.


Premier Li hits out at decoupling, voices GDP  confidence at ‘Summer Davos’: as it happened

Chinese Premier Li Qiang delivers his speech during the opening ceremony of the World Economic Forum . Photo: AFP

Chinese Premier Li Qiang speaks at the opening session of World Economic Forum’s Annual Meeting of the New Champions in Dalian. Photo: Reuters

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Chinese Premier Li Qiang delivered a speech during the opening plenary session at the 15th Annual Meeting of the New Champions in Dalian on Tuesday


Chinese Premier Li Qiang delivered a speech during the opening plenary session at the 15th Annual Meeting of the New Champions in Dalian on Tuesday.


China's economic recovery

World Economic Forum

China economy

Li Qiang

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The three-day Annual Meeting of the New Champions, also known as Summer Davos, begins on Tuesday in the Chinese city of Dalian.
The event will gather over 1,700 high-level leaders from business, government, civil society and international organisations - as well as prominent entrepreneurs, innovators and academics - to “generate collective insights and deployable solutions”, per organisers.
The Dalian municipal government has deployed a heavy police and security presence near the Dalian International Convention Centre.
This year’s forum features “Next Frontiers for Growth” as its theme.
Summer Davos has historically been an occasion for Chinese leaders to communicate with investors and the public over the progress of the country’s economy.
This year’s event is drawing wide attention. It is being held not long before China holds the third plenum of its Communist Party’s Central Committee, and in the midst of a heated conflict with the United States and the European Union over electric vehicle trade and other economic issues.



Welcome

People queue up to enter the hall at the Dalian International Conference Centre.



Crowd gathers

Chinese Premier Li Qiang will deliver a speech during the opening plenary session on Tuesday.
Summer Davos comes at a testing time for China as it attempts to meet a 5 per cent economic growth target set for this year in March.
China’s gross domestic product grew by 5.3 per cent in the first quarter of 2024, outpacing most economists’ expectations.


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But a foundering real estate sector remains the biggest drag on China’s economy.
Last month, Beijing announced a host of measures to rescue the nation’s property sector, including 300 billion yuan (US$41.3 billion) in funding to help clear excess housing inventory.
Dependence on external demand is also a potential roadblock for future growth as uncertainties swell over how intense trade conflicts with the United States and Europe might become - although China’s exports rose by 7.6 per cent from a year earlier in May.


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Testing time for China’s economy

The forum comes ahead of a busy time for China, with the much-anticipated third plenum of the Communist Party’s Central Committee set to take place next month.
The plenum has traditionally been a time for unveiling major economic strategies for the subsequent five to 10 years.
You can read our preview series here, looking at likely measures in store and providing an analysis of the present state of affairs for major items on the country’s agenda.


Busy time for China as third plenum looms

We are hearing from Liaoning governor Li Lecheng, chair of Greater China at the World Economic Forum Liming Chen, and World Economic Forum founder Klaus Schwab.


First up

Chinese Premier Li Qiang has taken the stage at the Dalian International Conference Centre.



Li Qiang takes the stage

“Here I would like to share with you three observations of my own,” Li says.
“First, we need to confront the growth predicament of the world economy. We know the road to recovery has been treacherous since the onset of Covid-19. According to forecasts of the International Monetary Fund and other institutions, global growth may remain moderate or even slow down in the coming years.
“Anaemic global growth is not only caused by temporary factors such the pandemic, high inflation and rising debt. It can also be ascribed to deep-seated problems and intrinsic issues.”


Li shares 3 observations

“Next frontiers for growth are starting to take shape from a technology perspective,” Li says. “This round of scientific revolution is mainly powered by progress in intelligent brain and health technologies.
“The rapid advancement of cutting edge, information energy and biological technologies has provided new pathways for tackling climate change, energy crisis and other major challenges facing humanity itself.
“It has also notably enhanced the quality and efficiency of the supply system and catalysed and generated massive new demand from an industry perspective. Breakthroughs and the integration of frontier technologies have redefined traditional production function, triggered a quantum leap in productivity, and opened up new domains and avenues of business, including in artificial Intelligence, green energy and biomedicine.”


‘Next frontiers for growth are starting to take shape’

As Li talked about the reasons for global economic growth stagnating and the need to grow the world’s “economic pie”, he mentioned the confounding factor of geopolitical tensions.
“If every country just considers maximising their own interests, like a high fence and small yard,” he said, a reference to the Biden administration’s strategy for tech and trade restrictions, “it will be a vicious cycle.”
“This would drag the world into a destructive spiral,” he added. “Where fierce competition for a larger slice ends up in a diminishing pie. This is something we do not want to see. The right choice is to approach development issues with a longer view and broader mind, and join with others to make the pie bigger. This is how we could sustain the growth of the world economy, and open new horizons for our own development.”



Geopolitics stifling growth, Li says

“A number of frontier technologies and industries with the potential for explosive growth are ready to burst onto the stage,” Li says.
“This brings hope for the world economy to catapult into a new upwards cycle. We have confidence in that.
“China has also taken exploratory steps in this regard. In recent years, we have continued to promote high-quality development, accelerate the cultivation of new quality productive forces, and foster new drivers of growth.
“These efforts have provided strong dynamism for China’s economic development and have created greater cooperation space for companies around the world.”


Tech a ‘catapult’ for world economy

Li says China’s renewable energy new installation accounted for more than 50 per cent of global installed capacity.
He says that advanced electric vehicles and batteries, as well as TV products, made by Chinese companies have not only met domestic demand, but also enriched supply in the international market.
“China’s renewable-energy instalment, EVs and solar panel development not only safeguard domestic needs, but also enrich international supplies and help ease global inflation,” he says.



China’s renewable energy new installation accounted for more than 50% of global installed capacity

Li says China’s market is open and that international companies are competing on a fair platform with Chinese companies, which promotes the development of emerging industries.


‘China’s market is open’

Li says after China’s economy grew by 5.3 per cent in the first quarter, and that growth has continued in the second quarter.
“We have the confidence and the capability to achieve the 5 per cent annual growth target,” Li says.



‘Confidence, capability to achieve 5% annual growth target’

Li follows up with a sales pitch for investing and doing business in China.
“The rapid rise of China’s new industries,” he says, “is rooted in our unique comparative advantages. China has a supersized market of more than 1.4 billion people. We have a complete industrial supporting system, and an abundant labour force and talent pool. Chinese consumers are also fairly receptive to new technologies.
“All of these make China a broad stage for enterprises to pursue innovation and upgrade their products. Economies of scale can help reduce costs and accommodate different technological road maps and business models.”



Li touts China’s strengths for business

Li mentions “small yard, high fence” for the second time.
“Small yard, high fence will not strangle competitors,” he says.


‘Small yard, high fence will not strangle competitors’

Li is elaborating on the strength of China’s enterprises, and providing an overview of recent regulatory changes to free up the country’s business environment.
“That is how China’s emerging industries get their competitiveness. It’s a testament to the principal role of enterprises and innovative enterprises at the forefront of the markets. They are more sensitive to changes in demand, and they have the strongest desire for innovation,” he says.
“We have been doing our best to foster a market-oriented world-class business environment within a sound legal framework. To that end, we’ve been abolishing regulations that limit market access and fair competition, facilitating the flow of factors of innovation to enterprises and promoting an entrepreneurial spirit.”



Li: China’s business environment ‘world-class’

“Science and technology are key variables in future development,” Li says. “A major site progress usually comes from unrelenting research, accumulation and extensive cooperation.
“The exploration of new frontiers should not be seen as a zero-sum game. In this regard, we’re all players competing for excellence and making progress together.
“A small-yard, high-fence approach cannot hold back the development of others. It only ends up constraining oneself.
“The right thing to do is to create an open, fair and non-discriminatory environment for seismic innovation on the basis of protecting intellectual property, so as to enable the free flow of ideas for innovation and creation.”


‘Exploration of new frontiers should not be seen as a zero-sum game’

“I would also like to say that China’s large market is open,” Li says, extending an open invitation to overseas firms.
“Foreign companies compete, communicate and cooperate with domestic ones on a level playing field, and they have become a major force enabling the growth of emerging industries, and buttressed the sound and sustained development of the Chinese economy.”
Li also appraised the economic growth figures for the year, expressing faith that the annual target will be met.
“The Chinese economy has sustained a momentum of recovery. It got off to a good start in the first quarter of this year, with 5.3 per cent year-on-year growth, and that has continued with steady growth in the second quarter.
“We are confident in achieving the growth target of around 5 per cent for this year.”



Li is dedicating time to a robust defence of China’s new-energy sectors, whose subsidies and exports are under the microscope after a series of tariffs and investigations from the United States and European Union.
“We cannot slow down our pace in the green transition for short-term growth, nor practice protectionism in the name of green development or environmental protection,” he says.
“The green transition itself provides huge potential for development. We need to jointly advance the development of green and low-carbon industries and foster more growth drivers for the green economy.”
He becomes more pointed as he talks about the need for openness.
“The history of global economic development shows that openness brings progress, and that isolation leaves it behind. Only through open interactions, exchanges and mutual learning can we keep pushing the boundaries of development and open up new frontiers,” he says.



Li defends China’s green transition, calls for openness

Premier Li Qiang says some countries use the green transition as an excuse for “trade protectionism”, a practice that he opposes in favor of an open environment.
“We should ditch bloc confrontation,” he says, “and go against supply-chain decoupling.”


Li says no to ‘bloc confrontation’

Li expresses optimism for emerging technologies but cautions against their potential to create or exacerbate divides.
“New technologies such as AI and big data, while contributing to economic growth, may also cause problems such as structural unemployment, economic inequality and technology and AI divides,” he says.
Cooperation and coordination are Li’s prescribed solutions for these dangers.
“It’s important for us to coordinate the development governance of new technologies, make improvements to laws and governance frameworks to address conflicting rules and social risks brought by frontier technologies, and strive to achieve more inclusive development that benefits all.
“It’s also important to provide education and training to vulnerable groups and upskill workforces, so that more countries and people can benefit from innovation.”



‘AI divide’ can be resolved through cooperation

“In the past few years, we’ve been taking a lot of measures and done a lot that is aimed at keeping the roots healthy, for instance, as we attach great importance to scientific innovation,” he says.
“In particular, we have increased tax deductions for R&D expenses of enterprises. The goal is to enhance innovation as a key driver of growth.”


‘The goal is to enhance innovation as a key driver of growth’

When addressing China’s post-pandemic economic recovery, Premier Li Qiang compares the country to a recovering patient, and says it needs to solve its issues with targeted measures and a gradual recovery.
“During the pandemic, the economy had a big illness,” he says.
“It has just recovered, and we cannot inject strong medicine now. I believe the most fundamental thing is how to properly handle the relationships between short-term and long-term, and between symptoms and root causes.
“In traditional Chinese medicine, it’s called keeping the roots healthy.”



China’s economy suffered ‘illness’ in pandemic

Li also talks about China’s large-scale trade-in scheme to upgrade its stock of industrial equipment and drive spending on consumer goods
“So, for many major issues, one single policy simply won’t work. Where we are going we will take a combination of policy measures and instruments so that we can have stronger and more robust measures,” he says.
“This year we are advancing the large-scale equipment, upgrading and consumer-goods-trading programme.
“This is a very typical example of a policy combination. It would not only expand investment, but also promote industrial upgrading.”


‘Where we are going we will take a combination of policy measures’

Li says China needs to keep improving industries through innovation.
“The source of industries is technology. Only when new technologies keep emerging can we provide a steady flow of impetus to the development of new industries,” he says. “In recent years, China has enhanced its work in basic research.
“We highly value the development of strategic scientific capacities to promote the innovation of enterprises, to improve industries through innovation.”


‘Keep improving industries through innovation’

Li is now addressing the problem of China’s ageing population. He begins with some positives.
“We should put ageing in perspective. With the improvement of healthcare, this is a positive ageing, what I call a healthy ageing. The elderly are a valuable resource for society,” he says.
However, he adds, structural changes in population still require a response – one that he says the government is taking up in several areas.
“We need to take a long-term perspective in response to these issues. We are working to improve the elderly care system, and supporting the development of the ‘silver economy’.
“I think an effective response cannot only help us better respond to ageing, but also foster new growth drivers.”



Li: China’s ‘healthy’ ageing still requires response

Li, responding to a question from World Economic Forum chairman Klaus Schwab, talks about next steps for tech.
“All countries attach great importance to new technologies, and China is no exception,” he says. “I think we should take into consideration three factors: the characteristics of new technologies and new industries, China’s national conditions, and the unique advantages of different places.
“We have strongly supported foundational research and development work, and we should create sufficient application scenarios.”


Li’s ‘three factors’ for next-gen tech

Li concludes by summing up the main points of his speech, with a focus on China’s appeal to overseas businesses.
“First, we have a massive market. Second, we have a complete industrial chain. Lots of ideas can be tested in China. And to develop new industries, we should rely on enterprises.”


Li reiterates appeal to foreign firms

That’s it for Li Qiang. He hands over to Polish President Andrzej Duda.

