At the ongoing second session of the 13th National People's Congress (NPC) in Beijing, Premier Li Keqiang delivered his government work report covering the past year, in which the Chinese economic development is the issue of greatest concern to the people.

From the report, we can see the Chinese economy has entered a new phase of transitioning from high-speed growth to high-quality development.

Currently, the world faces the tremendous changes that in normal circumstances would be likely to happen only once in a century. A move away from globalization and towards trade protectionism, intensified political and economic conflicts among big powers – all of these show the world has entered a long period of high-risk with increased instability and uncertainty. China is also facing an array of grave challenges. The country must simultaneously deal with the slowdown in economic growth, proceed with difficult structural adjustments, and absorb the effects of previous economic stimulus policies. In such circumstances, risks and opportunity coexist, and only high-quality development can turn danger into opportunity.

When talking about the "opening-up," we used to mean the free flow of commodities and production factors. Now, however, China is pushing for a transition towards liberalization of rules and systems. This means China is following international practices, including intellectual property rights protection, the negative list system, the principle of competitive neutrality, etc. In its future reforms, China will continue to lay stress on international cooperation and enhance capacity, institutional and cross-border network building for high-quality development.

To promote high-quality development, we also need to build a modern economic system. A strong manufacturing industry is the foundation of the real economy. From original equipment manufacturers (OEM) to independent brands' creation, from the low-end of global value chains to the high-end, China's manufacturing industry has made strides to get where it is today after undergoing hardships, and will continue to march forward unswervingly. With a sound innovation environment, modern financial system, world-class colleges and universities, and strong human resources, China's manufacturing industry is bound to realize the transition from a "sweat-driven" to an "innovation-driven" approach.

In this transition from high-speed growth to high-quality development, the Chinese economy is exploring both theories and practice. We firmly believe in this truth: although the journey is long and tortuous, we have made a strong start and will arrive.

(Advisor of this episode: Zhang Yansheng, Principal Researcher of CCIEE)

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