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What Does the Belt and Road Initiative Say About China’s Confidence in Its Economy?
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What Does the Belt and Road Initiative Say About China’s Confidence in Its Economy?

Han Jie, An Pei, Liu Kaixiong, Zhang Chao and Liu Hongxia
Xinhua, 2019
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Proposed by Chinese President Xi Jinping in 2013, the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) has extended from Asia and Europe to Africa, Americas and Oceania, stringing countries together in support of free trade and multilateralism. In April, 2019, China held the second annual Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation to reaffirmed China’s commitment to opening up and continue to build bridges with partner countries. In this article, state-owned news agency Xinhua News gives a concise overview of the points arising from the event and what to expect of the BRI going forward. 

Summary

China’s economy is holding strong in contrast to a global fatigue.

Not long before the second Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation in April 2019, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) lowered its 2019 growth projections for the world economy – but raised those of China. That makes China the only major economy that the IMF expects to exceed earlier expectations. Despite many external uncertainties, China’s economy grew by 6.4% year-on-year in the first quarter of 2019. China continues to play the role of “stabilizer” in the world economy.

China’s consumer market shows great momentum for growth, and the industrial upgrade is becoming a key economic driver.

China now has the world’s largest middle-income population, and it’s still growing. Data shows that in 2018, China’s retail sales of consumer goods totaled ¥38.1 trillion (approximately $497 billion), a year-on-year increase of 9%. During the week of Chinese New Year 2019, offline retail and restaurant revenues reached over ¥1 trillion, while online sales surpassed ¥...

About the Authors

Han Jie, An Bei, Liu Kaixiong, Zhang Chao and Liu Hongxia are reporters for Xinhua News Agency, which is the official press agency of the People’s Republic of China and the biggest media organization in China.

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