A worker assembles a fluid handling system on Saturday at a factory in Haizhou Industrial Park in Lianyungang, Jiangsu province. CHENG YUHE/ FOR CHINA DAILYSeveral provincial-level governments have announced incentive measures, including fostering high-quality development and optimizing the business environment, to encourage growth this year and spur recovery from the impact of COVID-19.Experts said the actions show many governments are taking a more pro-growth stance, which will give a strong boost to the economy in 2023.They said the impact of the virus will be short-lived, and the economy will rebound with the orderly implementation of the optimized COVID-19 containment measures as well as stimulus policies and follow-up measures taking effect.Guangdong province will step up efforts to meet the annual target of GDP growth above 5 percent, including speeding up the implementation of projects mapped out by the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25) and boosting private sector investment. Ai Xuefeng, director of the provincial development and reform commission, made the statement at a conference on high-quality development on Saturday, the first working day after the Spring Festival holiday.An action plan consisting of 10 points was released by the Shanghai municipal government on Sunday. According to the plan, three tasks — boosting confidence, expanding demand and seeking stable growth — are imperative, with the city aiming to achieve above 5.5 percent GDP growth in 2023.?The plan focuses on stabilizing expectations, shoring up confidence, aiding enterprises in phases and pushing forward high-quality development. Bailing out enterprises, restoring consumption, extending investment, stabilizing foreign trade, elevating industrial innovation and creating a world-class business environment are among 10 measures included in the action plan.?Officials from Zhejiang and Jilin provinces also held meetings on Saturday and pledged to make efforts to boost the digital economy and optimize the business environment.Li?Chao,?chief?economist?at?Zheshang?Securities, said most provincial-level regions are targeting GDP growth of above 5 percent in 2023, voicing optimism for a notable economic rebound this year.Li said that local governments are giving priority to expanding investment and spurring consumption.Many provincial-level regions, such as Shandong and Henan, have announced measures to speed up the construction of key projects in 2023, especially in fields such as new energy, new materials, new technology, water resource management and transportation, which will inject impetus into the economy, Li said.Despite the headwinds and challenges, China posted better-than-expected 3 percent economic growth in 2022, with many provincial-level regions reporting solid GDP growth last year.At least eight provincial-level regions in China saw their total GDP exceed 5 trillion yuan (7 billion) in 2022, with Guangdong and Jiangsu reaching over 12 trillion yuan, according to provincial government data.Zhou?Maohua,?an?analyst?at?China?Everbright?Bank, said China's economy is expected to expand by more than 5 percent this year, given the gradual return to normal work and production levels and stronger policy support.However, Zhou also warned of difficulties and challenges ahead, such as high inflation across the globe and slowing international demand.He said the government needs to boost domestic demand, strengthen coordination of fiscal and monetary policies and ease economic burdens on hard-hit enterprises and sectors.
Customers experience a mystery box machine of online fashion firm POIZON in Shanghai on Aug 21. CHINA DAILYChina's tech and internet companies are expected to embrace a new round of growth this year, which will inject greater impetus into job creation and the country's economic recovery, said industry experts and company executives."Restoring expectations and confidence in platform companies this year will drive the promotion of high-quality employment," said Zhang Yansheng, chief researcher at the China Center for International Economic Exchanges."They can also maximize their role of driving the integration of digital technologies and the real economy to offer fresh impetus to new occupations," Zhang said.The remarks were made following the tone-setting Central Economic Work Conference that took place in December. The meeting emphasized that platform companies — which mainly refer to tech and internet enterprises that leverage platforms to offer services — will be supported to "fully display their capabilities" in bolstering economic growth, job creation and international competition.A report led by the Chinese Academy of Personnel Science said that over the next five years, Tencent's digital ecosystem is expected to help create 31.8 million new jobs, adding that the company has driven the development of 147 new job categories."As an important part of the new economy, the platform economy has undergone a period of healthy governance coupled with the gradual improvement of related laws and regulations, and it now has the conditions to radiate vitality and speed up further development," said Wang Xiaoming, head of industrial and technological innovation at the Institute of Science and Development at the Chinese Academy of Sciences."Amid internal and external economic uncertainties, platform enterprises are expected to play a leading role in driving both domestic economic growth and global industrial advancement," Wang said.Shan Zhiguang, director of the information and industrial development department at the State Information Center, said: "Moving forward, a group of tech and internet enterprises will lead digital transformation in various industrial sectors, including consumption, entertainment and medical care."They will drive the formation of several innovation ecosystems related to artificial intelligence, cloud computing, blockchain, big data and processors. It will be a new normal for major economies to compete in the above-mentioned ecosystems."A white paper released by the China Academy of Information and Communications Technology, a government think tank, showed that the market scale of China's digital economy reached .1 trillion last year, which was the second-largest globally."In terms of consumption, China's younger generations are stepping up to become the main force of luxury consumption. We are inspired to bring such strong demand to global brands and the consumer market," said Yang Bing, founder and CEO of POIZON, an online fashion marketplace for authentic branded sneakers and designer label accessories as well as luxury brands.Moving forward, the platform will also leverage more technologies, including augmented reality and artificial intelligence, to drive more creative consumption experiences for young consumers, Yang added."This positive shift enables platform companies to not only lead development in various business sectors in the domestic market, but also compete further on the global stage in the future," said Wei Jianguo, former vice-minister of commerce and vice-chairman of the China Center for International Economic Exchanges, in an earlier interview.
