From a formal point of view, things are going well in China: strong economic growth, lots of new jobs. But there are big problems, for example in the real estate and stock markets. Experts are therefore curious to see whether the People’s Congress will address this.
Some things don’t change: When the state and party leaders enter under the leadership of General Secretary Xi Jinping, around 3,000 delegates clap to the marching music.
After the national anthem is sung, the Prime Minister presents his work report, as he does every year. The focus: the economy. “The most important development goals this year are growth of around five percent and the creation of over twelve million jobs in the cities. The unemployment rate there is expected to be around 5.5 percent.”
Achieving the targets is not easy, everyone has to make an effort, said Prime Minister Li Qiang. You have to ensure stability. At the same time, the restructuring of the growth model should continue.
Lots of construction sites
According to official information, in 2023 the gross domestic product increased by 5.2 percent compared to the previous year. Significantly more than in many other countries. But China’s economy has numerous construction sites. The real estate industry is in crisis, domestic consumption is weak, municipalities are heavily indebted, many young people cannot find a job.
“This will be an interesting event,” says Jörg Wuttke, former president of the European Chamber of Commerce in China. “Of course it’s a cheering organization again, five percent growth, everything is great – but behind the scenes there is a huge crunch.”
Problems on the real estate and stock markets
He has been observing the meetings in Beijing for some time. 2023 was disappointing, also with a view to the weak real estate sector.
But the big issue is the stock market: “In just a few months, we lost as much money as the gross national product of Germany and France combined: eight trillion US dollars have disappeared. These are actually the areas that are of interest to people. We’ll have to see what signs they give, but to be honest I don’t expect much.”
Concerns about rising military budgets
At the opening of the annual session of the People’s Congress, China’s leadership also announced that the military budget will increase by 7.2 percent this year – as it did last year.
The ever-increasing military spending is viewed with concern internationally – among other things because the state and party leadership regularly threatens war with Taiwan. The communist government considers the island to be its own part of the country, even though Taiwan was never part of the People’s Republic.
No questions from journalists wanted
The National People’s Congress meets for a week. Every year, the approximately 3,000 non-democratic delegates approve the decisions that the leadership of the Communist Party has already decided on.
But some things are changing: Yesterday, a spokesman announced that Li Qiang will not hold a press conference at the end of the National People’s Congress session this year or in the next few years. In the past 30 years or so, this has been a rare opportunity for journalists to ask the Prime Minister questions.
No reasons were given. Observers see the cancellation as a further sign that China’s leadership is increasingly isolating itself – and that the Prime Minister is being further removed from power. Only one person should be at the center of power: state and party leader Xi Jinping.
Benjamin Eyssel, ARD Beijing, tagesschau, March 5, 2024 8:52 a.m