As China held its Central Economic Work Conference in Beijing, international experts said China's high-quality economic development had steadily advanced in 2024, demonstrating strong resilience and vitality. The stability of China's policies, economic growth and development expectations will continue to give more certainty to an unstable world.

Pivot for global development

Many international institutions have raised their expectations for China's economic growth rate in 2025, with growing optimism about China.

"China views difficulties with a rational and pragmatic attitude and responds to challenges with institutional advantages and policy tools," Thai think tank scholar Tharakorn Wusatirakul said. "This is an important manifestation of China's economic resilience."

Farhana Paruk, senior executive at the Gordon Institute of Business Science at the University of Pretoria in South Africa, said she can feel the changes every time she comes to China: "The continuous construction of China's free trade zones, the constant innovation of industrial forms, and the successive introduction of new measures to expand opening up all demonstrate the resilience and vitality of the Chinese economy. China will remain a leading engine for global development."

Park Seung-chan, dean of the International Exchange Institute of Yongin University in South Korea, said China is promoting the liberalization and facilitation of trade and investment, playing a significant role in maintaining the stability of the global industrial and supply chains. The sustained and stable growth of the Chinese economy will have positive impacts on global economic development.

Marta Montoro, manager and institutional relations director at Catedra China, a think tank in Spain, spoke about her recent visit to Beijing and Hangzhou in east China: "During my visit, I felt China's firm determination to promote sci-tech innovation and sustainable development. The new development philosophy is driving China's high-quality development to achieve continuous results."

Contributor to global transformation

Montoro added that China has been making great efforts to consolidate the foundation of innovation, enhance total factor productivity, and optimize and upgrade its economic structure. China is also advancing its "dual carbon" goal, accelerating the transformation of its energy structure, and promoting green travel. She called China a model in advancing sustainable development.

Tharakorn said China's "AI Plus" initiative — a national strategy to deeply integrate AI across six key areas of science and technology, industry, consumption, people's wellbeing, governance, and global cooperation, as well as high-quality development of key manufacturing industrial chains provide policy support for the growth of new economic drivers such as the digital economy and green technology.

The accelerated green transformation of the entire process of industrial upgrading is not only enhancing China's international competitiveness but also contributing to global economic transformation and sustainable development, he added.

Paruk said China's innovation-driven development strategy is providing an ideal testing ground for sci-tech innovation. In the development of electric vehicles and new energy, China's technologies and concepts are driving the growth of related industries worldwide.

Creating more opportunities for others

Park commented on China strengthening cooperation with other countries through multilateral trading platforms. Beijing has improved the negative list management system for cross-border trade in services and the Hainan Free Trade Port, with its launch of island-wide special customs operations, is enabling easier goods and personnel access to the island.

Tharakorn said by promoting trade and investment liberalization and facilitation, and developing digital trade and green trade, China has not only expanded its own development space, but also provided critical opportunities for all countries to deeply participate in regional industrial and supply chains.

"China's economy has been growing steadily and its opening up to the outside world has been continuously expanded, adding more impetus to further promoting South-South cooperation. Chinese technologies, solutions and experiences have been increasingly promoted and applied in more and more developing countries," Paruk said.

Montoro called China a "vital partner for all countries to jointly address global challenges and build a prosperous and stable future."