Employees work at a workshop of Jack Sewing Machine Co., Ltd. in Taizhou, east China's Zhejiang Province, March 23, 2023. (Xinhua/Weng Xinyang)
BEIJING, March 27 (Xinhua) -- After a good start this year, the Chinese economy will buoy steady and sustained development, adding certainty to global growth clouded by upheavals, an official said on Saturday.
The country has hit the "fast-forward" button on its economic growth after it optimized the epidemic prevention and control measures, said Han Wenxiu, executive deputy director of the office of the Central Committee for Financial and Economic Affairs, at the economic summit of the China Development Forum 2023.
This photo taken on Feb. 15, 2023 shows a view of the crowded Shanghai Hongqiao Railway Station in east China's Shanghai. (Xinhua/Wang Xiang)
An employee carries goods at the intelligent warehouse and logistics center of Heihe cross-border e-commerce industrial park in the Heihe Area of China (Heilongjiang) Pilot Free Trade Zone in northeast China's Heilongjiang Province, Feb. 11, 2023. (Xinhua/Xie Jianfei)
Passenger flows, logistics, and business trips in China are normalizing fast, while the domestic demand has recovered, said Han, citing major economic indicators in the first two months.
The country's retail sales, a gauge of consumption growth, increased 3.5 percent year on year in the January-February period, reversing declines seen in the previous three months.
In the period, China's value-added industrial output went up 2.4 percent year on year, while the index gauging the country's service industry output rose 5.5 percent.
Workers transfer trolleys of flowers at the Kunming International Flora Auction Trading Center in Dounan, southwest China's Yunnan Province, Jan. 31, 2023. (Xinhua/Chen Xinbo)
Consumers purchase goods for the Chinese New Year at a fruit market in Yiwu, east China's Zhejiang Province, Jan. 17, 2023. (Photo by Gong Xianming/Xinhua)
Customers select cosmetics at a duty-free shop in Haikou, south China's Hainan Province, Jan. 29, 2023. (Xinhua/Pu Xiaoxu)
With the accelerated implementation of supporting policies, the confidence of enterprises and investors is also on the mend, Han said.
He also noted that China's economic operation still faces challenges such as stagflation risks and spillover effects brought by the tightened monetary policies of developed economies, saying that the country's 2023 growth target is set after taking the above factors into consideration.
China aims to expand its economy by around 5 percent in 2023, according to its government work report.
"The current development momentum bodes a promising prospect for the full-year growth target," said Han, adding that China will remain a significant engine fueling global economic growth.
A freight train departs from Yiwu West Railway Station in Yiwu, east China's Zhejiang Province, March 9, 2023. (Xinhua/Huang Zongzhi)
This photo shows the construction site of an ethylene project in north China's Tianjin, Feb. 9, 2023. (Xinhua/Sun Fanyue)
This photo taken on Feb. 24, 2023 shows the assembly line of GAC Aion, an NEV subsidiary of Guangzhou Automobile Group Co., Ltd. (GAC Group), in Guangzhou, south China's Guangdong Province. (Xinhua/Deng Hua)
The contribution of China's economy to the world economic growth has exceeded 30 percent on average in the past decade, and the figure this year will surpass that in 2022, providing market demand and a strong impetus to the global recovery, he said.
Han also pointed out that China is proactive in stabilizing global industrial and supply chains, defusing financial risks, attracting foreign investments, and upholding multilateralism.
This aerial photo taken on Feb. 25, 2023 shows the container terminal at Qinzhou Port in south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. (Xinhua/Zhang Ailin)
Crew members from Shanghai-based Juneyao Air, who attend the delivery ceremony of the first China-assembled A321neo aircraft, pose for a group photo in front of the aircraft in north China's Tianjin on March 24, 2023. (Xinhua/Zhao Zishuo)
To further revive the economy, China will make more efforts in Chinese modernization to cultivate development in the medium and long term, said Han.
China will expand international innovation cooperation and achieve greater self-reliance and strength in science and technology, he said.
A staff member checks chip products at Nanjing V-Test Semiconductor Technology Co., Ltd. in Pukou Economic Development Zone of Nanjing, east China's Jiangsu Province, March 9, 2023. (Xinhua/Ji Chunpeng)
This photo taken on Feb. 17, 2023 shows robot arms working on a production line at a glass factory in Jiamusi, northeast China's Heilongjiang Province. (Xinhua/Wang Jianwei)
Han noted that the country would improve birth policies and the elderly care service system and stick to high-level opening up.
"The pursuit of Chinese modernization will surely inject vitality into the world's prosperity," he added.
This aerial photo taken on Jan. 31, 2023 shows vehicles to be delivered at a parking lot of the FAW Jiefang in Changchun, northeast China's Jilin Province. (Xinhua/Xu Chang)■
