Chinese President Xi Jinping, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission (CMC), delivers a speech at a rally marking the 95th anniversary of the founding of the CPC at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, capital of China, July 1, 2016. (Xinhua/Liu Weibing)
BNN Bloomberg: China's Xi calls for political stability as economic risks mount
President Xi Jinping stressed the need to maintain political stability in an unusual meeting of China’s top leaders -- a fresh sign the ruling party is growing concerned about the social implications of the slowing economy.
Xi told a “seminar” of top provincial leaders and ministers in Beijing on Monday that the Communist Party needed greater efforts “to prevent and resolve major risks,” the official Xinhua News Agency said. He said areas of concern facing the leadership ranged from politics and ideology to the economy, environment and external situation.
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WNU Editor: The Chinese leadership are worried about the economy .... even while saying that everything is proceeding as expected .... Asia stocks higher as China says its economy grew in line with expectations last year (CNBC). For three decades the Chinese have enjoyed unprecedented economic growth, and this growth in turn has fuelled expectations among many in China that life can only get better. A slowing down economy, coupled with a very real possibility of higher unemployment and stagnant wages, is something that privately Beijing is terrified may happen.My prediction. The Chinese are now under pressure to resolve their trade dispute with the U.S., and that the option of waiting for two years on the hope that President Trump may be defeated when Americans go to the polls in 2020 is a dangerous option to embrace. I expect major concessions from China in the coming months.
Update: Hope is not a strategy .... China isn’t looking to grow its economy but, rather, is waiting for it to recover. Good luck with that (Adam Xie, SCMP).
