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Speakers:

Mr. Zheng Shanjie, chairman of the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC)

Mr. Liu Sushe, vice chairman of the NDRC

Mr. Zhao Chenxin, vice chairman of the NDRC

Mr. Li Chunlin, vice chairman of the NDRC

Ms. Zheng Bei, vice chairwoman of the NDRC

Chairperson:

Ms. Shou Xiaoli, director general of the Press Bureau of the State Council Information Office (SCIO) and spokesperson of the SCIO

Date:

Oct. 8, 2024 

Shou Xiaoli:

Ladies and gentlemen, good morning. Welcome to this press conference held by the State Council Information Office (SCIO). Today, we are very pleased to invite Mr. Zheng Shanjie, chairman of the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), to brief you on the systematic implementation of a package of incremental policies designed to solidly promote economic growth, structural optimization and sustained development momentum. Also present today are NDRC vice chairpersons Mr. Liu Sushe, Mr. Zhao Chenxin, Mr. Li Chunlin and Ms. Zheng Bei. Now, I will give the floor to Mr. Zheng for his introduction.

Zheng Shanjie:

Friends from the media, good morning. I am very glad to attend today's press conference.

On Sept. 26, the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee held a meeting to analyze and study the current economic situation and make further arrangements regarding economic work, introducing a package of incremental policies. This fully demonstrates the significant importance that the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core places on economic work, and fully showcases the confidence and determination to promote sustained economic recovery and growth. On Sept. 29, the State Council held an executive meeting, which made arrangements for the implementation of the package of incremental policies.

Today, I would like to take this opportunity to brief you on the subject of the comprehensive implementation of the decisions and arrangements of the CPC Central Committee and the State Council, systematically implementing a package of incremental policies. Following that, my colleagues and I will answer questions you may have. Let me first update you on two aspects:

First, regarding the current economic situation.

We believe that to accurately grasp the actual situation of China's economy, it is necessary to be comprehensive, objective and calm. We need to observe the macro picture and development trends, and to consider both the current situation and future prospects.

From a macro perspective, China's economy is generally stable and making steady progress, despite facing an increasingly complex domestic and international environment. New quality productive forces are forming more rapidly, the people's well-being is continuously being strengthened, and new progress has been made in preventing and resolving risks in key areas. High-quality development is being deeply advanced, and overall social stability has been maintained.

We can succinctly summarize the situation with two keywords: "stability" and "progress." Stability is primarily evident in the overall economy. On the supply side, agricultural production remains stable, with another bumper harvest expected this year. Industrial growth has been relatively robust, with the value added by industrial enterprises above designated size increasing by 5.8% year on year in the first eight months. Key drivers, such as the output of new energy vehicles and integrated circuits, grew by 31.3% and 26.6%, respectively. The service sector has maintained a stable growth momentum, with the index of service production (ISP) increasing by 4.9%. Among these, the ISP for information transmission, software and information technology services grew by 11.9%, while the ISP for leasing and business services increased by 7.7%. In terms of market demand, investment and consumption continue to grow. Manufacturing investment, which is crucial for long-term prospects, and supports and benefits sustainable development, increased by 9.1%, outpacing overall investment by 5.7 percentage points. Efforts to promote large-scale equipment renewals and trade-ins of consumer goods are yielding outstanding results, with a relatively fast rebound in automobile and home appliance sales recently. It is expected that in September, retail sales of passenger cars by major carmakers will increase by 10% compared to the previous month. In the first eight months, exports priced in RMB grew by 6.9%. Regarding employment and prices, the employment situation remained stable, with 9.44 million new urban jobs added in the first eight months, which is an increase of 200,000 compared to the same period last year. The consumer price index (CPI) rose by 0.2% year on year, with a 0.6% increase in August alone. Progress is mainly reflected in structural optimization. New drivers of growth are accelerating their growth and expansion, with high-tech manufacturing and equipment manufacturing value-added increasing by 8.9% and 7.6%, respectively, in the first eight months. The structure of the three major demands is becoming more optimized, and continuous improvements and breakthroughs are being made in some key areas. The advancement of new urbanization and coordinated regional development is being further promoted, with major economically developed provinces effectively shouldering greater responsibilities.

While acknowledging the achievements, successes and highlights of economic development, we are also confronting existing difficulties and problems. On one hand, the external environment has become increasingly complex and severe. According to the latest forecast by the International Monetary Fund (IMF), global economic growth this year is projected to be 3.2%, which is lower than last year. Major economies are experiencing weak growth momentum and heavy debt burdens. Recently, there has been a general trend of interest rate cuts, leading to significant volatility in international markets, increased global trade protectionism, and a rise in uncertain and unstable factors. All these could adversely impact China through trade, investment and financial channels. On the other hand, domestic economic downward pressure has increased, with fluctuations in main economic indicators such as industry, investment and consumption since the third quarter. Some industries are experiencing intense internal competition, while some enterprises are still not adapting to optimization, upgrading or transformational development changes. Additionally, some are increasing production without increasing revenue or profits, others are finding production and operations quite challenging, and there remain considerable risks and hidden dangers in some areas.

Upon comprehensive analysis, and from the perspective of development trends, the fundamentals of the Chinese economy have remained unchanged. Favorable conditions such as large market potential and strong economic resilience persist. With the continued release of effects from existing policies, especially with the introduction and implementation of incremental policies, recent market expectations have significantly improved. The purchasing managers' index (PMI) for manufacturing has rebounded quickly, the stock market is warming up and rising, and market consumption during the National Day holiday was robust. We are fully confident in achieving the annual goals for economic and social development and in maintaining sustained, stable and healthy development of the economy and society.

Second, regarding considerations for implementing the package of incremental policies.

In response to new situations and issues in the current economic operations, the CPC Central Committee and the State Council have made sound decisions and acted decisively. While effectively implementing existing policies, they have focused on five areas: intensifying countercyclical adjustments of macro policies, expanding effective domestic demand, increasing assistance and support for enterprises, reversing the downturn of the real estate market and stabilizing it, and boosting the capital market. A package of incremental policies will be robustly introduced to promote sustained economic recovery and growth. We are not only focused on addressing the immediate difficulties and problems, but also pay more attention to solving significant issues in medium- and long-term economic development. This includes strengthening efforts to build a strong foundation, ensuring long-term benefits and sustainability, and making steady progress to promote high-quality development.

The package of incremental policies reflects three areas of greater emphasis: improving the quality of economic development, supporting the healthy development of the real economy and business entities, and coordinating high-quality development with high-level security. The planning and formulation of these policies also exhibits "four persistences." First is the persistence in goal orientation, anchoring the annual goals and tasks, making full use of policy space, and striving to stimulate greater development potential. Second is the persistence in problem orientation, focusing on business entities and societal concerns, addressing the difficulties in economic and social development as well as in enterprises' production and operations, and adopting more targeted measures. Third is the persistence in systematic policy implementation, coordinating across fiscal, financial, consumption, investment, real estate, stock market, employment and social welfare policies to enhance the consistency of macroeconomic policies and strengthen policy synergy. Fourth is the persistence in combining short- and long-term strategies, coordinating the transition of policies from this year to next to promote sustained, stable and healthy economic development and to ensure a successful conclusion of the 14th Five-Year Plan.

The implementation of an incremental policy package involves comprehensive and systematic work that should be precisely targeted to enhance effectiveness and sustainability. Specifically, there are five targeted approaches. First, to cope with downward economic pressure, we will advance macro policies for countercyclical adjustments through concerted and continued efforts. Second, to address issues such as insufficiency in effective domestic demand, we will focus on improving people's well-being and promoting consumption when implementing incremental policies for boosting domestic demand, effectively driving growth through making investments. Third, in view of the current difficulties in the production and operation of some enterprises, we will increase assistance and practically improve the business environment to help them overcome these challenges. Fourth, eyeing the weak real estate market, we will introduce comprehensive policies and measures to stabilize the market and avoid further decline. Fifth, in response to the stock market's previous downward spiral, we will launch effective measures to boost the capital market.

Next, we will work with various departments and localities to fully and quickly implement decisions and arrangements made by the CPC Central Committee and the State Council, implementing an incremental policy package through a holistic approach to create a policy synergy. We will solve issues that hinder the implementation of policies to solidly promote economic growth, structural optimization and sustained momentum for development. Our goal is for the policies to take effect within the year as well as to ensure the successful conclusion of the 14th five-year plan period in the coming year and a good start for the 15th five-year plan period. That's all for my briefing. Thank you.