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China economy
OpinionComment
Perry Wong
Perry Wong

The View | Why inland regions hold key to China’s continued ‘common prosperity’ push

  • The economic damage wrought by lockdowns in major Chinese cities shows how over-reliance on them could harm long-term economic growth
  • The success of China’s ‘common prosperity’ and ‘dual circulation’ strategies will increasingly depend on unlocking the potential of inland cities

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A man works at a machinery factory in southwest China’s Chongqing municipality on May 27. Inland cities such as Chongqing, Wuhan and Xian will be central to maintaining China’s growth momentum as the government tries to bring economic development to regions outside the prosperous east coast. Photo: Xinhua
Perry Wong
The economic repercussions of the recent pandemic-induced lockdowns in Shanghai and Beijing indicate that China’s over-reliance on its coastal cities could be detrimental to the country’s long-term economic future.
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To steel itself against future socioeconomic shocks, China is looking to bolster its economic capabilities across as many regions as possible.

Steering these efforts is part of its most recent five-year plan, which reveals an increased focus on domestic markets and internal economic development. But, as with any economic plan that looks promising on paper; we must assess the implications of strategies such as China’s “dual circulation” policy and its “common prosperity” approach to the nation’s future.

The outcomes of China’s economic plans will rely heavily on the potential and performance of inland cities. These include landlocked areas such as Hubei, Jiangxi and Sichuan, which sit far from the more economically advanced coastal regions of Shanghai, Beijing and Shenzhen that have better access to international trade due to their geographic positions.

Central-region cities are primed to bridge socioeconomic disparities by promoting broader-based nationwide development. This can also unlock the potential of local innovation across more regions, bringing China a step closer to common prosperity.

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Socio-economic disparities can exist in many forms within a country but, in China, they are mostly based on geography. This disparity is further widened as citizens seek better economic opportunities in more developed coastal regions.

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