At the recent Summer Davos Forum, Chinese Premier Li Qiang highlighted China’s commitment to fostering a vast and open market, with plans to further improve the business environment by abolishing regulations that hinder market access and fair competition. Addressing concerns over China’s rapid growth in green technology sectors, Li defended the production of electric vehicles, lithium-ion batteries, and photovoltaic products, stating that domestic demand is the priority before enriching the global supply. He rejected Western accusations of over-capacity and unfair subsidies, attributing China’s success to its unique comparative advantages and the receptiveness of Chinese consumers to new technologies and emphasized the importance of opposing economic decoupling to maintain global economic stability. Li also expressed confidence that China will hit its full-year economic growth target of around 5%, despite ongoing trade tensions with major economies such as the US and EU. Amidst the imposition of tariffs on Chinese-made electric vehicles by the EU, analysts suggest that Chinese EV makers like BYD may withstand the impact due to their significant cost advantages and plans to establish a factory in Hungary to circumvent tariffs. Li’s remarks at the World Economic Forum’s Annual Meeting of the New Champions in northeastern China further underscored the need for open markets and collaboration in green technologies to promote global growth. He called for a broader perspective on development to address the current economic situation.
Key points
- Chinese Premier Li Qiang commits to improving the business environment and stands firm against Western allegations of unfair practices in green tech industries.
- Li emphasizes China’s focus on meeting domestic demand for EVs and batteries before contributing to global supply, and warns against the negative impact of economic decoupling.
- Despite trade tensions and EU tariffs, China is confident in achieving its 5% economic growth target and continues to advocate for open markets and global cooperation.
