TIANJIN - Chinese Premier Li Qiang delivered a keynote speech at the opening plenary of the 16th Annual Meeting of the New Champions, also known as the Summer Davos, in North China's Tianjin municipality on Wednesday.
The following is the English translation of the full text of the speech.
Address by H.E. Li Qiang
Premier of the State Council of the People’s Republic of China
At the opening plenary of the Annual Meeting of the New Champions 2025
Tianjin, June 25, 2025
Your Excellency Chairman Peter Brabeck-Letmanthe and President Børge Brende,
Your Excellencies Leaders of Participating Countries,
Your Excellencies Heads of International Organizations,
Distinguished Guests,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
It gives me great pleasure to join you in the beautiful city of Tianjin for the Annual Meeting of the New Champions 2025. On behalf of the Chinese government, I wish to extend warm congratulations on the opening of the annual meeting and express heartfelt thanks to you all for your long-standing support for China’s development.
This year, the Annual Meeting of the New Champions is held in Tianjin for the eighth time. Back in 2008, when the annual meeting first came to this city, the world economy was grappling with the serious impact of the global financial crisis. People felt disoriented and anxious, not knowing whether the world economy could emerge from the difficult situation and where it was heading. History often rhymes. Today, the world economy and international economic and trade cooperation are confronted with new difficulties and challenges. As President Xi Jinping noted, global development is now at a critical crossroads. It is exactly at times like this that we must think deeply about how the global economy and trade will evolve, what kind of economic and trade order our world needs, and how we should strengthen cooperation and tackle challenges to promote common development and prosperity. Here, I wish to share with you three thoughts.
My first point is that the current international economic and trade landscape is undergoing profound changes. Due to factors including geopolitics, technological advancement, and economic structure, the global economic and trade landscape is going through deep transformations and adjustments, all happening at a staggering speed and scale. This requires us to look beyond the complex and intricate dynamics, and grasp its underlying trends and characteristics. As I see it, we need to pay particular attention to the following.
First, the economic and trade system is becoming more diverse, and the Global South is rapidly gaining strength. While trade is weakening in developed economies, Global South countries, which account for 70 percent of the global population, are emerging as a vibrant market. Since 2000, developing countries have seen their trade in goods grow by 4.6 times, much faster than that of developed economies, and their share of global trade has increased from 30 percent to 45 percent. As such, developing countries have increasingly become the main growth drivers of global trade.
Second, trade is slowing down in traditional sectors, but growing in emerging sectors. The road to trade recovery has not been smooth over the past years and international trade structure is also going through adjustments. In 2024, global trade in goods grew by a mere two percent, while trade in services expanded by 8.8 percent and contributed to 60 percent of total increase in global trade. The rapid advancement of technology has pushed the frontiers of trade, leading to robust growth in digital trade and green trade. By 2024, the global export of digital services had doubled in the past 10 years.
Third, global mechanisms are facing challenges, and regional collaboration is growing. We have seen substantial increase in protectionist measures and growing economic and trade frictions across the world. Data shows that in 2024, there were over 1,200 discriminatory trade barriers globally, far higher than the average of 200-plus per year before the pandemic. Many countries are forced to explore new ways to trade, resulting in the continuous increase of bilateral and minilateral economic and trade arrangements. The number of regional trade agreements signed among countries has grown from less than 100 at the beginning of this century to over 600 today. The pros and cons of this are worth pondering.
Fourth, cross-border investment is fluctuating and declining, and the risk of fragmentation in industrial and supply chains is on the rise. The growing number of restrictive policies on foreign investment worldwide, compounded by trade tensions, has prompted multinational corporations to be more prudent in investment decision-making. Global cross-border investment has seen negative growth for three consecutive years, down by around 40 percent in 2024 from the historical peak. Some countries have interfered with market activities in the name of de-risking, forcing adjustments in the international division of labor. The trends of friendshoring, nearshoring and onshoring in industrial and supply chains are strengthening, leading to more redundant construction and reduced efficiency of the economy.
From these shifts we can see that in the evolution of the international economic and trade landscape, there are both destructive factors that keep creating shocks, and many positive forces that seek to counter the risks of instability and uncertainty by building consensus and strengthening connectivity. A deeper examination reveals that division and disruption often originate from shortsighted calculations, whereas positive and proactive actions are driven by long-term considerations. We will not and shall not return to closed-off and isolated islands; what we need are more bridges of win-win cooperation.
My second point is, as the landscape shifts in international economic and trade cooperation, constructive actions are needed more than ever. Changes and transformation are often accompanied by restructuring and reshaping. The world economy of tomorrow will not be a simple repetition of stories of the past. That said, no one can alter the overriding trend of history or the law of the objective world. Economic globalization will not be reversed. More likely, it will carve out a new path, forge ahead amid twists and turns, and achieve an upward spiral. Whether we realize it or not, whether on our own initiative or not, when we engage in international economic and trade activities, we are actually reshaping their rules and order. In this process, we should keep to the right path and follow the overall trend, demonstrate wisdom and a sense of responsibility, and adopt a positive attitude and take constructive actions. Adopting a positive attitude means we should always keep to the right direction when growing the global economy and international trade, and firmly embrace a universally beneficial and inclusive economic globalization. Taking constructive actions means we should take more practical steps proactively to safeguard free trade and multilateralism, and ensure the stable growth of the world economy. Specifically, there are mainly three aspects that we need to grasp.
First, we should resolve differences and disagreements through equal consultation. It is normal for countries to have differences and disagreements in their economic and trade relations. As long as they strengthen consultation and dialogue in the spirit of mutual respect, solutions can always be found. We Chinese people often say that harmony makes good business. We have economic and trade exchanges with almost all countries and regions of the world. We treat all partners as equals, regardless of any differences in size, system or culture, and we work with them to manage disagreements and expand consensus through dialogue and consultation in line with WTO principles. This year, China and 32 other countries jointly established the International Organization for Mediation in Hong Kong, which is a new initiative that seeks to use the wisdom of the East in resolving international disputes. China is ready to make persistent efforts with all countries to build maximum consensus and cement the foundation of the trust that underpins international economic and trade cooperation.
Second, we should safeguard common interests in mutually beneficial cooperation. The global economy is deeply integrated. We all have a stake in each other’s success. No country can grow and prosper in isolation from the world. Hence, cooperation is a must if we want to achieve development, and to safeguard the common interests of all is to safeguard the interests of one’s own. In the face of global challenges, we should uphold the principle of extensive consultation and joint contribution for shared benefit, enhance macro policy coordination, safeguard stable and unimpeded global industrial and supply chains, and boost the security and resilience of countries’ development through closer cooperation. China will continue to actively participate in APEC, SCO, BRICS, G20 and other multilateral cooperation, advance high-quality Belt and Road cooperation, and increase input in areas such as global connectivity and sustainable development to better promote common prosperity.
Third, we should contribute to each other’s development by generating more growth. Currently, the momentum of global growth is weakening, and many sectors are mired in the fight for existing resources. I am afraid this is also an important cause of the many tensions we are seeing today. To address this problem, should we choose a zero-sum approach and expand our own interests at the expense of others, or should we opt for win-win cooperation and make the pie bigger through openness and sharing? The answer is self-evident. When international economy and trade is facing headwinds, what we need to do is not resorting to the law of the jungle where the strong prey on the weak, but enabling each other’s success through win-win cooperation. China has achieved great successes by committing itself to opening up; and going forward, China will open its door still wider to the world. We will further integrate and connect with the global market, step up industrial collaboration with other countries, and actively share the fruits of our development to deliver greater benefits to the world.
My third point is that the Chinese economy, with its further development, will continue to contribute to the world economy. Over the past years, the Chinese economy has remained an important engine of the world economy, contributing around 30 percent of global growth. The reason lies not just in China’s stability and high growth, but also in its openness and its linkage with the world economy. In other words, the Chinese economy has embraced the global market and integrated into the world economy; it is also driving global growth and promoting world development. In addition to that, China is willing to do all it can to help overcome the difficulties and challenges the world economy faces.
First, the sustained and steady growth of the Chinese economy will provide strong underpinning for faster recovery of the world economy. Over the past years, despite the changes in its external environment, the Chinese economy has always maintained a positive development momentum. This year, against notably stronger shocks from outside, China’s GDP still grew by 5.4 percent in the first quarter, and the key economic indicators have kept improving since the start of the second quarter. We are confident and capable of maintaining relatively rapid growth. A closer look would show that China’s economic development is not a short-term expansion but a steady progression toward long-term goals. China has clear development goals, consistent planning and guidance, resolute reform measures and pragmatic macro policies. We have implemented 14 Five-Year Plans in the past 70-plus years, and we will formulate the 15th Five-Year Plan this year. Our blueprint, once drawn, will be seen through to the end. These measures enable the Chinese economy to navigate through cycles and develop in a sound and steady manner, and continue to provide more stability and certainty for the world economy.
Second, the continuous expansion and upgrade of the Chinese market will create more room for global economy and trade to grow and regain momentum. China is the world’s second largest consumer market and importer, with nearly RMB50 trillion yuan of consumption, over RMB50 trillion yuan of investment and over RMB20 trillion yuan of imports, not to mention huge growth potential in many areas. We are on track to become a high-income country in an all-round way, supported by robust demand for consumption upgrade both in traditional areas such as clothing, food, housing and transport, and in emerging areas such as smart terminal and cultural IP. We are intensifying our efforts to implement the strategy of expanding domestic demand by launching special initiatives to boost consumption. This will make China a mega-sized consumption powerhouse on top of being a manufacturing powerhouse. All these will provide more market space for enterprises around the world.
Third, China’s continuous breakthroughs and leap in innovation will provide much-needed driving force for global development. The constant pursuit of innovation and progress is the underlying driving force of China’s economy. For years, China has taken science and technology as its primary productive force, and blazed a successful path whereby sci-tech innovation spearheads industrial innovation and industrial upgrade propels sci-tech evolution. In China today, high-speed railways traverse numerous mountains and rivers, electric vehicles are serving millions of households, and artificial intelligence is empowering thousands of industries. It is fair to say that, in areas such as green energy and advanced manufacturing, Chinese technologies now lead the world. And most notably, China’s innovation is open and open-source. We are willing to share indigenous technologies and innovation scenarios with the world, and support international collaboration in research, development, application and popularization, in order to advance innovation-driven development in all countries through openness and cooperation.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Friends,
In the development of global economy and trade, entrepreneurs shoulder an important mission and play a critical role. The theme of this annual meeting, “Entrepreneurship for a New Era,” is highly relevant. I always believe that in human society, entrepreneurs are a group of people with exceptional talent who assume the important role of organizer of production and operation and driver of social progress in various countries. In particular, in the vast market economy, entrepreneurs, with their extraordinary insight, creativity and ability to execute, can organize various resource elements and transform them into real productivity, turn the uncertainty of changes in the market into the certainty of market success, and dare to blaze new trails for economic and social development. Together, they represent a unique and powerful force. Such entrepreneurs and entrepreneurship are particularly invaluable as today’s world economy grapples with all the changes and urgently needs a way out and forward, and they deserve to be respected, cherished and supported. The new era requires entrepreneurs to play bigger roles, assume greater responsibilities and add new dimensions to entrepreneurship. I encourage you to do more things for the greater good. I hope you will always follow the laws of the market, do what is right, champion openness and cooperation, uphold economic globalization, oppose decoupling and severing of supply chains, and call on all sides not to turn trade into a political or security issue. I encourage you to do more things to break new grounds. I hope you will seize the opportunities of the new round of sci-tech revolution and industrial transformation, break free from temporary difficulties or obstacles, consolidate innovation resources in a broader scope with a long-term perspective, and unlock new, promising areas in economic growth. I encourage you to do more things for win-win results. I hope you will embrace each other’s development with an open and inclusive mind, share resources, draw on each other’s strengths, promote market integration and mutual empowerment, and achieve common growth. The Chinese government will, as always, encourage and support entrepreneurs in their undertakings and endeavors, and continue to foster a market-oriented, world-class business environment governed by a sound legal framework. With arms wide open, we warmly welcome enterprises from around the world to invest in China, deepen your roots in China, develop alongside China, and work with us for a better future.
I wish this annual meeting a full success. Thank you.
