China's Li Qiang says focus on improving quality of growth

Premier Li Qiang waves to reporters as he arrives to address a news conference after the closing of the 14th National People's Congress at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on March 13. FENG YONGBIN CHINA DAILY China will focus on improving the quality of its economic growth and people's well-being while strengthening policy support to meet the annual GDP target of around 5 percent, Premier Li Qiang said on March 13.

At his first news conference as premier, Li outlined the policy objectives and priorities of the central government, which analysts said underscored Beijing's commitment to promoting stable growth, boosting market confidence and anchoring expectations better on the prospects of the world's second-largest economy.

In response to a question on how to achieve the growth target, he said the government will introduce a number of policy combinations, including measures to expand demand, advance reform, boost technological innovation and defuse risks.

The premier expressed support for private businesses, saying that the government will make more efforts to encourage private entrepreneurs to grow and thrive, so that they can enjoy a better environment and a broader development space.

Li reiterated China's stance on its opening-up policy, and pledged that the country will align with high-standard international economic and trade rules to expand opening-up this year.

The premier's comments indicate that China s policy priority will focus on stability and quality of development rather than roll out aggressive measures to spur a rapid GDP growth rate, according to analysts.

Liu Chunsheng, an associate professor of international trade at the Central University of Finance and Economics, said that the government's commitment to pursuing economic progress while maintaining stability has sent a positive signal to the market and boosted market confidence.

The premier s remarks show the government's determination to focus on improving people's well-being and fostering high-quality development instead of simply pursuing rapid growth, he said.

Liu said that China will strengthen its coordination between its fiscal and monetary policies, focus on driving consumption, preventing and defusing risks in key fields, such as the property sector, and deepening reforms to boost market vitality.

Most economists have revised and raised their projections on the full-year growth rate of the Chinese economy. They said that challenges that arise due to the cloudy global outlook, changes in external demand and risks in the domestic property sector and the financial system need to be closely watched.

David Qu, a senior economist at Bloomberg, said that China s policy priority will focus on stabilizing growth while addressing structural economic problems that are associated with people's livelihoods, technological innovations, green transition and risk prevention.

The economic data for the first two months is expected to reflect the trend of a steady rebound in China. One of the most important things for the economic recovery in China is to restore confidence and address problems in the property sector and the risks in local government debt, Qu said.