Growing pains will pay off, say top economists

A year ago, Premier Li Keqiang told the World Economic Forum that his country could avoid a hard landing. Nobel laureate Joseph Stiglitz and Credit Suisse Group AG Chief Executive Officer Tidjane Thiam, who attended this year's forum held last week in the Swiss town of Davos, said he is still right.

Their stance clashes with the recent sentiment in financial markets, where a sell-off of the yuan and Chinese equities sent shockwaves through commodities markets and helped wipe $5 trillion off stocks worldwide by reviving fears over the global growth outlook.

"Sentiment has likely lurched far too quickly into a bearish posture and over-hyped downside scenarios," said Tim Adams, the United States Treasury's former point-man on China and now president of the Institute of International Finance. "In the end, China will likely emulate every major economy and muddle through."