Spotlight: APEC summit helps boost confidence in China

The just-concluded Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Economic Leaders' Meeting, an important platform where the leaders voiced their commitments to economic integration and enhancing inter-connectivity in the Asia Pacific, has helped shore up global confidence in China and global economic outlook.

At the two-day meetings, Chinese President Xi Jinping put forward a four-point proposal on how to "steer this giant ship of the Asia-Pacific economy in the right direction."

He called on APEC economies to press ahead with reform and innovation, build an open economy, implement the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda, and promote inter-connectivity.

The proposal is in line with those Xi proposed during the weekend at the G20 summit in Turkey, where he called for strengthening coordination on macroeconomic policy, innovation-driven development and an open world economy as means for boosting global growth.

CONFIDENCE IN CHINA

All these proposals are China's pledges and contributions to Asia Pacific and the world as a whole, and show China's willingness to seek to inject a new impetus into the world economy, experts said.

In response to concerns about China's economic slowdown, Xi elaborated at the APEC summit that China's overall economy is operating within the reasonable range and has maintained a steady and fairly rapid growth, achieving a 6.9-percent growth rate in the first three quarters this year and contributing about 30 percent of global economic growth.

China's economy is still growing at a steady pace, said Ling Xingguang, an honorary professor at the Fukui Prefecture University of Japan.

China's 13th Five-Year Plan, which seeks to double 2010 GDP and the per capita income of both urban and rural residents by 2020, aims to keep China's annual GDP growth rate at 6 to 7 percent, he said.

A less than 7-percent growth rate will still make China a major contributor to the world's economic growth, he added.

China is growing very fast and is a very important economic player in the Asia-Pacific region, said Suzanne M. Benoit, president-director general of AERO MONTREAL.

She said that economic slowdown occurs everywhere in the world, even in the United States.

Rod Eddington AO, chairman of Australia and New Zealand JP Morgan, said he was optimistic about China's economy.

"China is going through an important change at the moment. Their focus is moved from export-led economy to domestic consumption. All changes will take some time," he said.

CHINA'S PLEDGES

During the APEC meeting, Xi announced that China has established and put into operation the Silk Road Fund, and is now working actively with more than 50 countries to prepare for the launch of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB).

He also urged relative parties to speed up the realization of the Free Trade Area of the Asia-Pacific (FTAAP) and maximize the openness and inclusiveness of free trade arrangements.

The Belt and Road initiative is a fantastic idea and an acknowledgement of China's important role in the Asia-Pacific region, said Juan Francisco Raffo, chairman of the APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC).

With the introduction of the Belt and Road initiative and the AIIB, China provides countries along the silk routes with opportunities to improve their inter-connectivity, thus opening broad markets for Asian and European countries, said Benito Lim, political science professor of Ateneo de Manila University.

China's Belt and Road initiative will be essential for bridging the massive infrastructure spending deficit in Asia, said Richard Javad Heydarian, a specialist in Asian affairs and assistant professor in political science at De La Salle University.

China is in a unique position to improve inter-connectivity and improve the overall infrastructure landscape in Asia, he said.

The establishment of the AIIB has brought confidence and hopes for the the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) members, as it will provide financial support for major projects in the region, said Bambang Suryono, president of the Nanyang ASEAN Foundation based in Jakarta.

Economic integration in Asia-Pacific can not be fulfilled in a short term. Nevertheless, it has made rapid progress with the contributions made by the annual APEC meetings, said Chito Romana, a Filipino expert on China issues.

Hoang Van Dung, first vice executive president of Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry, told reporters that China plays an important role in world trade.

China is good at manufacturing and infrastructure construction, especially the construction of roads, seaports and airports, he said, expressing the hope that China can help APEC economies improve their infrastructure facilities. Endi