Chinese President Xi warns of 'period of turbulent change' amid rising external risks

Chinese President Xi Jinping warned on August 24 that the country must be prepared for a “period of turbulent change” amid rising protectionism and supply chain disruption due to the coronavirus pandemic. The virus outbreak in China’s Wuhan spiralled out around the world and has claimed over 800,000 lives so far, with no respite from the pandemic visible in the near future.

Several countries have accused China of hiding facts on the novel coronavirus during the early outbreak and Beijing has been fearing isolation on international platforms. Apart from the accusations of mishandling the health crisis, China has also been cornered by countries like the United States and Australia for its expansionist behaviour.

"In the coming period, we will face more and more headwinds in the external environment, and we must be prepared to deal with a series of new risks and challenges," Xi was quoted as saying by state-run agency Xinhua.

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Focus on domestic consumption

The Chinese president chaired a seminar attended by a group of policy advisors and state economists where he warned against rising external markets risk. They discussed the mid- to long-term economic trends to prepare the draft of 14th Five-year plan which is expected to be unveiled in 2021 at the annual parliament meeting.

Xi hinted at the possibility of domestic market dominating the national economy in the future as the nation is grappling with major diplomatic setbacks on various fronts. China’s policy on Hong Kong and alleged human rights violations in Xinjiang have prompted the international community to take cognisance of the developments which could further affect the country’s export-dependent economy.

However, Xi vowed to further open up China’s economy, signalling a willingness to work on issues with the United States after recent sanctions on Chinese officials. He reportedly told the seminar that the government must actively cooperate with all countries, regions and enterprises who are willing to cooperate, including states, localities and enterprises in the United States.

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