Advertisement
Looking inward, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang focuses on the national bottom line
- Jobs, stability and risk control dominate the priorities for the coming year
- Tone shifts on Hong Kong, away from national security to integration in the Greater Bay Area
Reading Time:4 minutes
Why you can trust SCMP
23
China unveiled a cautious and inward-looking government report for this year, putting the focus on the country’s bottom line as it confronts mounting external risks.
Addressing national legislators on Saturday, Premier Li Keqiang made no mention of the United States, Europe or Russia’s attack on Ukraine. Instead the emphasis was squarely on maintaining stability and risk control.
“We are very clear about the problems and challenges before us,” Li said to nearly 3,000 deputies as he delivered the annual government work report at the opening of the National People’s Congress at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing.
He said the world economic recovery was still shaky, commodity prices were high and prone to fluctuations, and China’s external environment was “increasingly volatile, grave and uncertain”.
In what is expected to be his final work report, Li stressed the importance of maintaining economic and social stability in the lead-up to the Communist Party’s five-yearly national congress this autumn, when the ruling party is tipped to reshuffle its leadership line-up.
01:25
China aims for modest 5.5% GDP growth in 2022, citing economic pressures
China aims for modest 5.5% GDP growth in 2022, citing economic pressures
In the report, the government set an economic growth target of around 5.5 per cent, the lowest in decades but a goal that would take “arduous efforts” to realise.
Advertisement