11 new signals from the premier's press conference

9. Boosting the "China-U.S. relationship which generates US$100 million each working hour in business"

Premier Li said that in order to develop China-U.S. relations, both sides should seek common interests while respecting their differences. His theory mirrors Henry Kissinger's idea of "go game wisdom" expressed in his book "On China."

In Kissinger's view, Western diplomacy is played out like a chess game, where both players look to checkmate each other. But Chinese diplomatic wisdom is similar to that of a go game; China wishes to seek peaceful coexistence with all other parties. As long as no one counts the pieces, the game can last forever.

10. "Having an iron wrist and solid regulations to curb pollution"

In his meeting with the press, Premier Li used the phrase "iron wrist to curb pollution" for the first time, indicating that the government will declare war on officials who ignore pollution. It is because in developing China's ecological civilization, officials linked with pollution are as distasteful as corrupt officials.

11. "Equipment made in China should withstand supervision from the press."

The government work report calls for "raising the status of Chinese products in the international supply chain, encourage exports of large equipment, such as communications equipment, railways and power plants, so that Chinese products can become famous across the world."

In order to upgrade its economy, China also needs to upgrade its exports. Mechanical and electrical goods now account for 57 percent of all Chinese products for export, showing a marked upward trend in the global industrial chain. But the highest quality demands are on high-end products.

China is a country that has started to be able to compete at the top end of the market, and establishing a reputation is important. The premier's promise that products that are made in China should be subject to supervision is a resolute declaration that China will upgrade its industry and seek international business opportunities.

RDCY is Chongyang Institute for Financial Studies (RDCY) of Renmin University of China (RUC) based in Beijing.

The article was translated by Chen Boyuan. Its original unabridged version was published in Chinese.