Striving for balance

At a news conference where topics of concern were as diverse as they could be, Premier Li Keqiang's answers displayed the confident and no-nonsense style that has come to characterize the current leadership.

Despite the ostensible absence of hot potatoes, his responses revealed impressive awareness of the difficulties the country faces. Even on the perceived risks associated with China's financial sectors and local government debts, an outstanding risk worrying global economic observers, Li expressed full confidence that the feared scenarios can be prevented from materializing.

Citing last year's success in avoiding the predicted hard-landing to justify his optimism, Li assured us everything is under control, that his government is enhancing the monitoring of the risks and taking precautions.