Chinese Media Including Xinhua Praise Xi Jinping Leadership's 'Economic Achievements'

Emphasis on Success of 13th Five-Year Economic Development Plan Ahead of 19th 5th Plenary Session
Focus on China's Economic Direction Over Next 5 Years Including 14th Five-Year Economic Development Plan

[Asia Economy Beijing=Special Correspondent Jo Young-shin] Attention is focused on China's economic policy ahead of the 5th Plenary Session of the 19th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (the 19th CPC Central Committee).

The core of this 19th 5th Plenary Session is China's "14th Five-Year Economic Development Plan." A blueprint for China's economy from 2021 to 2025 will be unveiled. Since establishing the 1st Five-Year Economic Development Plan (1953?1957) in 1953, China has formulated and implemented economic development plans every five years.

The top concern at the 5th Plenary Session, held in Beijing from the 26th to the 29th of next month, is China's economic growth targets and operational direction.

The COVID-19 pandemic has changed the global political and economic landscape.

The political conflict between the U.S. and China has reached a peak to the extent that the term "New Cold War" is no longer surprising.

Moreover, the threat of decoupling is a reality right before us. The international political and economic environment facing China's leadership is truly challenging. This is why there are forecasts that China's economy will find it difficult to achieve growth levels seen in the past.

Considering this situation, there are expectations that the average annual economic growth target in the 14th Five-Year Economic Development Plan will be lowered to the 5% range. During the 13th Five-Year Plan, the Chinese government set an average annual growth target of 6.5%.

Depending on circumstances, the Chinese government may not present an average annual economic growth target at all. The Chinese leadership did not set an official economic growth target this year due to the impact of COVID-19.

Along with the economic growth target, the economic solutions are also a matter of intense interest. Since resolving U.S.-China conflicts will require considerable time, it is expected that China will present its own economic revitalization plan.

What the Chinese leadership is currently emphasizing is the "dual circulation" theory. The core of the dual circulation theory is to create a self-reliant economic structure by including domestic demand in the existing manufacturing and export-oriented economic structure. There is confidence that the economy can be sustained with a population of 1.4 billion.

In fact, as domestic demand revived in the second half of this year, the World Bank raised its forecast for China's economic growth rate from 1% to 2%.

Additionally, large-scale deregulation policies to attract foreign companies and overseas capital are also expected to be discussed at this meeting.

The Hong Kong South China Morning Post (SCMP) predicted, "China will prepare for domestic and international uncertainties based on the dual circulation strategy at this meeting."

Meanwhile, Chinese state media such as the People's Daily and Xinhua News Agency have been extensively reporting on the achievements of the 13th Five-Year Economic Development Plan (2016?2020) ahead of the 5th Plenary Session.

They have reported on how much the lives of Chinese people have improved over the past five years, emphasizing the leadership of President Xi Jinping and the Chinese leadership.

Xinhua News Agency reported on the 30th that last year, the per capita disposable income of the people was 30,733 yuan. The number of people living in poverty decreased from 98.99 million in 2012 to 5.51 million in 2019, with the poverty incidence rate dropping from 10.2% to 0.6%.

It also stated that a total of 53.78 million new jobs were created during the 13th Five-Year Economic Development Plan period.

Xinhua News Agency emphasized the success of the 13th Five-Year Economic Development Plan ahead of the announcement of the 14th Five-Year Economic Development Plan.

Keeping in mind that next year marks the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China, Xinhua reiterated that China has built a prosperous society over the past 100 years and must prepare for the next 100 years for a better future.

The People's Daily reported that compared to 2011, the per capita disposable income in 2019 increased by 96% in real terms, and that the Chinese leadership's goal of doubling the income of urban and rural residents has almost been achieved.

The People's Daily also added that under President Xi Jinping's leadership, China's economy and society have developed, and the income levels of urban and rural residents have significantly improved. This is to emphasize that the Chinese leadership's goal of building a "Xiaokang" society (where all people enjoy a comfortable and prosperous life) has effectively been achieved.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.