(Economic Watch) Provinces finalize GDP targets for 2022 China's "steady growth" focus is clear

　　China News Service, Beijing, February 8 (Reporter Wang Enbo) After the total GDP of many provinces in China broke through an important threshold in 2021, how to set the growth target in 2022 has become a big suspense.

　　Except for Tianjin, which was postponed due to the epidemic, the other 30 provinces (autonomous regions and municipalities) in China have recently held local two sessions to finalize the main economic indicators for 2022.

Behind each figure, the focus of China's economic work in the new year is gradually becoming clear.

　　In 2021, a total of 11 provinces in China will outperform the national GDP growth rate of 8.1%.

Entering 2022, with the weakening of the base effect, local governments have pragmatically lowered their GDP growth targets, with most provinces setting them within the range of 5.5% to 7%.

　　Among them, Hubei, which will lead the country in terms of economic growth in 2021, set the growth target for 2022 at "about 7%", and stated that it will strive for better results in actual work.

Hainan, which ranked second in terms of growth rate last year, continued to set high standards, with a target of "about 9%" being the highest in the country.

　　Guangdong, Jiangsu, and Shandong, which will rank among the top three in China in terms of economic aggregate in 2021, all aim at 5.5% this year.

Among them, Guangdong's target is set at "about 5.5%", while Jiangsu and Shandong should strive for "above 5.5%".

　　Ying Xiwen, a senior macro analyst at the China Minsheng Bank Research Institute, said that when local governments set their 2022 development goals, they can be roughly divided into two categories.

　　The first category is relatively pragmatic and prudent, and its announced goals are not far behind the potential growth rate. It can be considered that in 2022, in addition to stabilizing growth as the main task, certain reform goals will also be taken into account.

　　The other category is provinces that are challenging to achieve their development goals, and their goals are on the high side compared to their potential growth rates.

Among them, some are relatively enterprising provinces, such as Hainan, Jiangxi, Anhui, etc., which will take speeding up economic growth as an important goal in 2022; the other is provinces with relatively high pressure on economic growth and relatively arduous tasks of stabilizing growth, such as Liaoning, Jilin et al.

　　The goal has been set, the next question is "how to accomplish it".

From the information disclosed by the local two sessions, expanding effective investment and releasing consumer demand has become the focus of the layout.

　　"The external environment has become more complex and severe, and export growth is facing the pressure of slowing down. How to stimulate the potential of domestic demand has become one of the priorities of local layout." Liang Jing, a senior researcher at the Bank of China Research Institute, noted that in 2022, local governments proposed to actively cultivate new growth points of consumption. Including the promotion of large-scale consumption of automobiles and oil products, encouraging the development of home appliances to the countryside and trade-in for new ones, promoting the consumption of new energy vehicles, cultivating consumption hotspots such as county and township, green, digital, and sports, and supporting new forms of consumption.

　　In terms of investment, many provinces have set growth targets for 2022 that are higher than GDP growth.

Zhang Yu, chief macro analyst at Huachuang Securities Research Institute, pointed out that this year's local government work report focuses more on investment and has more detailed arrangements. More than a dozen provinces such as Beijing, Guangdong, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, and Shandong have clarified the key areas and major areas of investment this year. Project and investment intensity.

Specifically, it is expected that this year's investment will focus on infrastructure and manufacturing technology, and focus on leading major projects.

　　Actively cultivating new kinetic energy and expanding space for economic growth has also become an important direction for stable growth in the new year.

　　For example, Liang Jing said that in terms of improving the core competitiveness of the manufacturing industry, on the one hand, all localities emphasized the need to supplement the chain, extend the chain and strengthen the chain. Guangdong, Zhejiang, Shaanxi, Shanxi and other places have proposed to cultivate industrial chain "chain master" enterprises and manufacturing industries. Individual champion enterprises, specialized and special new enterprises, etc.; on the other hand, they are also focusing on promoting the development of industrial clusters.

　　The new crown epidemic has further accelerated the digital transformation of the economy and society, and the digital economy has received widespread attention.

Zhang Yu said that this year's local government work report placed the digital economy in a prominent position.

For example, the government work reports of Jiangsu, Shandong, Hubei and other provinces have appeared for the first time in the new indicator "the proportion of the added value of the core industries of the digital economy in the regional GDP".

　　With the coordinated development of Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei, the development of the Yangtze River Economic Belt, the construction of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, the integrated development of the Yangtze River Delta, the ecological protection and high-quality development of the Yellow River Basin, and other major regional strategies, localities are also actively planning to strengthen regional cooperation. , optimize the economic layout, and form a joint development force.

　　For example, Beijing proposes to fully support the construction of the Xiongan New Area and accelerate the construction of a modern capital metropolitan area; Guangdong proposes to speed up the construction of the "Greater Bay Area on Track", and promote the construction of Hengqin Guangdong-Macao Deep Cooperation Zone at a high level; Hubei proposes to make Wuhan bigger and stronger City circle; Sichuan proposed to comprehensively speed up the construction of the twin-city economic circle in the Chengdu-Chongqing region.

　　Luo Zhiheng, chief economist of Yuekai Securities and dean of the research institute, pointed out that in addition to implementing major national regional strategies and regional coordinated development strategies, accelerating regional coordinated development within the province, and promoting urban-rural integration, Jiangxi, Yunnan and Gansu The action of "strengthening the provincial capital" proposed by other provinces will also inject new meaning into the coordinated development of regions within the province.

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