China Builds Mega Consumer, Manufacturing Powerhouse Amid Trade Tensions

Chinese Premier Li Qiang highlighted China's strategic shift from a manufacturing-led economy to a consumption-driven powerhouse at the World Economic Forum in Tianjin, aiming to sustain around 5% GDP growth despite global trade tensions. He emphasized that China, as the world's second-largest economy, is intensifying efforts to expand domestic demand and create vast new opportunities for global businesses amid increasing protectionism and US tariffs under President Donald Trump. Li called for multilateral cooperation over protectionism, advocating for win-win outcomes rather than economic conflict, and portrayed China as a stabilizing force in a volatile global trade environment. While Beijing is optimistic about steady growth and the potential of its consumer market, analysts remain skeptical due to structural challenges and the political sensitivity of reforming social welfare to support this transition. The government has implemented measures such as interest rate cuts and consumer subsidies to boost spending, but achieving the ambitious growth target depends on harmonizing reform, social stability, and easing trade frictions. China’s pivot to consumption is seen as both a domestic necessity and an opportunity to open vast markets to international enterprises, even as global economic uncertainties persist.