Chinese Premier Li Keqiang on Thursday called for efforts, in five of the country’s biggest economic powerhouses in the Southeast coast, to stabilize economic growth and revenue, noting that the country’s economic recovery is at a critical point.
Li made the remarks on the current economic situation during a meeting with local officials from Shanghai, East China’s Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Fujian and South China’s Guangdong on Thursday, according to a report from China Media Group (CMG).
The five provincial-level regions along the Southeast coast account for more than one-third of the country’s economic output, nearly 40 percent of the national fiscal revenue, and nearly 80 percent of the local government’s net transfer to the central government, which supports the national fiscal strength.
In particular, Li urged those regions to avoid one-size-fits-all or simplification of policies but stressed that they should continue to improve the business environment and push ahead reforms, according to CMG.
At the forum, Li noted that since the beginning of this year, China’s economic performance has experienced a “very unusual process” and the basis for the country’s economic recovery is not solid yet and hard work to stabilize the economy is still needed.
Therefore, the country should coordinate COVID-19 prevention and control with social and economic development with higher efficiency, as well as jointly implement macroeconomic policies and deepen reforms to keep the economy operating within a reasonable range, he said.
Li mentioned that the five economic powerhouses should continue to shoulder the responsibilities of ensuring national fiscal revenue and stabilizing the domestic economy.
In particular, Li stressed that southeast coastal areas are the forefront of China’s opening-up policies, as the Yangtze River Delta and Pearl River Delta account for nearly 60 percent of China’s trade. Therefore, they should continue to boost reforms and development through opening-up, while improving the participation in global competition and cooperation.
An aerial photo of Hangzhou, capital city of East China’s Zhejiang Province Photo: VCG
