Chinese NPC Opening Prime Minister Lee's annual growth rate target announced without new Corona

China NPC Opening Prime Minister Lee's annual growth rate target not announced New Corona May 22 18:41

In China, the National People's Congress, which determines the key policies, has begun, and Prime Minister Li Keqiang has announced that the growth rate of the annual economic growth that is being put out every year has been affected by the fact that the spread of the new coronavirus has had a great impact on the economy. I didn't announce the numerical target. It is the first time since the 1990s that the Chinese government has not set a numerical target for economic growth in the NPC.

In response to the spread of the new coronavirus, the National People's Congress, which kicked off two months half late at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, attended by early 3000 Nearly representatives from the Xi Jinping Jintao, at the beginning, offered a silent prayer at all, Condolences to those who died from the infection.

Next, Prime Minister Li Keqiang reported on the government's activities and said that the measures have achieved great strategic results under the strong guidance of the leadership centered on Xi, regarding the spread of the new coronavirus infection. Emphasized.

On the other hand, he said, "Many vulnerable parts of infectious disease countermeasures have surfaced, and some opinions and suggestions of the public should be emphasized." Admitted.

He also stated that he is facing a factor of unpredictable impact. He does not present a concrete annual target for the economic growth rate.

It is the first time the Chinese government has forgotten to present its goals since the 1990s, when it was common for NPCs to show annual growth targets.

In addition, in addition to issuing special government bonds for the new coronavirus countermeasures in the scale of about 15 trillion yen in Japanese yen, the issuance limit of bonds used by local regions for infrastructure projects has expanded significantly from last year to 56 trillion yen. We have put forward a policy of supporting the depressed economy with aggressive fiscal policies, such as leaving too much.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Lee said in Hong Kong, where protests are continuing, that "the legal system and enforcement mechanism must be established to protect the security of the country", and the government intends to promote legislation to maintain security in this NPC. Was shown.

Regarding Taiwan, he said, "We must firmly oppose and stop the action of division that seeks independence," and curb the Cai Ying-wen administration, which rejects the "one-country-two system" that China considers as a suitable method for unifying Taiwan. did.

Furthermore, regarding the response to the new coronavirus, he said, "Strengthen cooperation with each country in coping with infectious disease measures and protect the international system centered on the United Nations," and continue to cooperate with WHO = World Health Organization to promote measures. And criticized the US for accusing WHO.

No growth rate target

In this NPC, we did not announce the numerical targets for annual economic growth that we have set out every year.

In the Chinese economy, the GDP growth rate for the first quarter from January to March was minus 6.8% for the first time since 1992 when quarterly data was released.

Behind the lack of a growth rate target is the fact that the outlook for the global economy cannot be forecast due to the spread of infections overseas, in addition to the current situation of the domestic economy, which has been hit hard.

Prime Minister Lee Keqiang said in a report on the government activity yesterday that the economic outlook was "the decline of the global economy has become more serious, domestic consumption, investment and exports have declined, and the employment situation has become more severe." He showed severe recognition.

In addition, the employment-related indicators included in the government activity report lowered the target for the number of new employees to 9 million, down 2 million from the previous year, and the target for surveyed unemployment in urban areas to be around 6%. , if you are 0.5 point worse than last year, also has a cautious view about the employment Xi Jinping leadership is important.

In the plan for the submitted economic development at the National People's Congress, although as a "growth just because does not show the target is not unnecessary", Xi Jinping leadership has been faced with a very difficult economic management.

The points of economic measures

Prime Minister Lee Keqiang announced in a government activity report on the 22nd that he would implement a proactive fiscal mobilization to support the depressed economy.

By expanding the government's budget deficit to increase spending of RMB 1 trillion and JPY 15 trillion in Japanese yen, and issuing special treasury bonds of RMB 1 trillion to implement antivirus measures, the total of 30 trillion All yen-sized spending is said to be used for economic measures by local governments.

In addition, the bond issuance limit for local governments to devote to infrastructure investment, etc. will increase significantly by RMB1.6 trillion from last year, to RMB3.75 trillion, or ¥ 56 trillion in Japanese yen.

Utilizing these funds, we will develop new demand at the same time as infrastructure development, by spreading the next-generation communication standard “5G” and charging stands for electric vehicles, and will also rebuild new public housing and railways. It is said that it will also lead to the improvement of life.

In addition, tax cuts and social insurance premium cuts will be implemented to support small and medium-sized enterprises, which will reduce the burden of RMB2.5 trillion or 37 trillion yen or more.

Unusual response with the new Corona

This year, the number of reporters that can be interviewed has been narrowed down from the usual year, many press conferences are held online, and virus tests are obligatory for representatives and reporters of the NPC who come in and out of the People's Palace and Press Center. I am.

In the NPC, about 2000 domestic reporters and about 1000 foreign reporters get permission for coverage each year, but according to Chinese media, the number is limited to a few hundred this time.

As measures against the new coronavirus continue, it seems to be a measure to prevent reporters from getting crowded at the interview site.

Furthermore, admission to the press center is only allowed to press reporters invited by the Chinese government, and the rest of the reporters will be able to view videos of press conferences and download materials on special sites. I am.

The press conference of the representatives of the NPC is held online by connecting with the press at the press center, and the representative will answer online.

Reporters entering the press center are obliged to have the virus tested elsewhere, and in some cases they are instructed to come to the site 9 hours before the interview.

On the other hand, a virus test was conducted on nearly 3,000 representatives of the NPC before they entered the Great Hall of the People. A total of two tests were performed, and all reported negative results.