China’s Premier Li Qiang vows wider opening to play stabilising role in global economy

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At the China International Import Expo (CIIE), Li highlights the importance of opening up its market to trading partners

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China’s Premier Li Qiang speaks at the opening ceremony of the China International Import Expo in Shanghai on Tuesday. Photo: AFP

Daniel Renin ShanghaiandMia Castagnonein Shanghai

Published: 11:37am, 5 Nov 2024Updated: 1:28pm, 5 Nov 2024

A wider opening of China would allow the country to play a stabilising role in a slowing global economy, Premier Li Qiang told international business leaders in Shanghai on Tuesday, while pledging to import more goods from trading partners.

Speaking to more than 1,000 government officials and company executives at the start of the China International Import Expo (CIIE), Li said that “concerted efforts” are needed to overcome the country’s difficulties and improve its economic outlook.

“China will further open up its supersized market and take strong measures to share opportunities with other countries,” he said. “We have the ability to drive the growth of our economy. China is making contributions [to the global economy] in its own way.”

Li’s speech comes as China grapples with a flagging economy. During the last quarter, the Chinese economy grew at an annual pace of 4.6 per cent, the slowest since mid-2023. Gross domestic product rose by 4.8 per cent in the January-September period, trailing the official target of around 5 per cent.

The CIIE has been held annually in Shanghai since 2018. Photo: Xinhua

In September, Beijing unleashed a suite of heavyweight policies, including monetary stimulus and property sector support measures, to boost the economy.

Li said on Tuesday that China has ample room to roll out more stimulus measures. “We are still able to launch bigger-sized fiscal stimulus policies to combat the cyclical slowdown,” he said. “We also have the flexibility to adjust our monetary policies.”