China to continue powering global recovery

The country has lifted millions out of poverty and its trade has helped stabilize the world economy

Some countries are playing up the "China threat" theory because, contrary to many foreign observers' expectations, China's economy has grown with its status on the world stage.

China's economy grew 6.7 percent in the first quarter of this year, reflecting its resilience amid global economic troubles.

Moreover, its strong growth has had a positive impact on the global economy, proving that the world's economic stability is linked to China's sustainable development.

The nation's GDP reached 67.6 trillion yuan ($10.4 trillion; 9.2 trillion euros) last year, an increase of 6.9 percent year-on-year, with the International Monetary Fund estimating that its GDP may account for 15.5 percent of the global total.

Compared with the global average economic growth rate of 2.4 percent, China's annual average growth rate was 7.3 percent from 2011 to 2015, the fastest among the world's major and developing economies. And during the past five years, its economic growth contributed more than 25 percent to global economic growth, which made it the most important engine of the world economy, as well as the main driver of global economic recovery.

China's fast-paced economic growth has also contributed to global poverty alleviation. According to a United Nations report on millennium development goals, China lifted more than 70 percent of the world's poor population out of poverty between 1990 and 2015.

In real terms, it helped reduce the number of impoverished people worldwide to 836 million from 1.9 billion.

World Bank data show the number of Chinese people living in abject poverty declined from 770 million in 1978 to 55.75 million last year, an annual decrease of 2.2 percent, far higher than the global average.

Developing countries in Africa and other regions have also met with moderate success in alleviating poverty.

In addition, because of its close economic and trade links with the outside world, China has been the world's largest trading country in goods over the past three years; and it ranked second in terms of service trade.

In spite of the decline in its foreign trade volume owing to falling commodity prices and shrinking global trade, China's trade volume still exceeded 24 trillion yuan last year, 13 percent of the world's total, contributing 30 percent to global trade growth.

Chinese trade with other countries and the "made in China" label have helped strengthen economic globalization and stabilize the world economy. During the 13th Five-Year Plan (2016-20), China's outbound direct investment is expected to exceed $500 billion and imports are forecast to reach $10 trillion, meaning it will continue to power the world's economic recovery and stabilize global growth while helping reduce unemployment and poverty worldwide.

The rising status of the yuan in the global currency system means countries can use it as a foreign exchange reserve to prevent risks, and thus ensure global economic stability.

Besides, China's endeavors to build free trade zones with other countries, its Belt and Road Initiative and the establishment of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, all symbolize China's accelerated efforts to strengthen globalization. And its voluntary actions as a responsible country will help expedite global economic recovery and promote the world's healthy economic development.

China's stable development indicates it will always seek peaceful development and help alleviate poverty and reduce unemployment worldwide.

The author is a researcher at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences' Institute of Quantitative and Technical Economics. The views do not necessarily reflect those of China Daily.

(China Daily European Weekly 04/22/2016 page8)