Zhongxin Finance, April 18. On the 18th, the State Council Information Office held a press conference on the operation of the national economy in the first quarter.

Recently, the social and economic life of Shanghai and other provinces and cities has been affected by the epidemic. How do you view the impact of this round of epidemic?

Will it affect the achievement of this year's economic growth target?

In this regard, the National Bureau of Statistics responded.

  Fu Linghui, spokesperson of the National Bureau of Statistics and director of the National Economic Comprehensive Statistics Department, said that since the beginning of this year, the international situation has been turbulent, the global epidemic has spread, geopolitical conflicts have intensified, external instability and uncertainty have increased, and domestic epidemics have frequently spread. , some unexpected factors exceeded expectations, and the downward pressure on the economy has increased.

Despite these unfavorable factors, under the strong leadership of the CPC Central Committee, all regions and departments have adhered to the principle of maintaining stability and seeking progress while scientifically coordinating epidemic prevention and control and social development, and intensified efforts to stabilize growth. The overall economic operation is within a reasonable range. .

  According to Fu Linghui, from the perspective of the trend in the next stage, although there is certain pressure in the short-term economic operation, from the perspective of the whole year, there are still many favorable conditions for my country's economy to maintain stable growth.

First, the recovery trend of consumption is expected to continue.

Although the growth of consumption has been suppressed to a certain extent due to the recent epidemic, the recovery trend of consumption will not change, and the role of consumption as a "ballast stone" will still appear.

In the first quarter, the contribution rate of final consumption expenditure growth to economic growth was 69.4%, still the largest contribution among the three major demands.

As the impact of the epidemic is gradually brought under control, the employment priority policy will continue to exert its strength, which will promote the improvement of residents' spending power and willingness to spend.

At the same time, actively promoting the expansion of bulk consumption such as new energy vehicles and green smart home appliances, promoting the deep integration of online and offline consumption, developing new forms of consumption and new models, and accelerating the quality and expansion of the rural consumer market will also be conducive to the continued growth of consumption.

Second, the stimulating effect of investment is expected to increase.

Since the beginning of this year, all localities have actively promoted the construction of major projects, driving the rapid growth of investment.

In the first quarter, investment in manufacturing increased by 15.6% year-on-year, and investment in infrastructure increased by 8.5%.

As my country's support for the development of the real economy continues to increase, the transformation and upgrading of traditional industries and the growing momentum of innovation and development in emerging industries will help drive the growth of industrial investment.

At the same time, centering on major national strategic deployments and the "14th Five-Year Plan", making infrastructure investment moderately ahead of time will also help to expand investment.

Third, the pace of industrial upgrading and development has accelerated.

In recent years, my country has deeply implemented the innovation-driven development strategy, strengthened strategic scientific and technological strength, enhanced scientific and technological innovation capabilities, increased corporate innovation incentives, increased the ratio of deductions for R&D expenses, and promoted industrial upgrading and development, and the effects have continued to emerge.

In the first quarter, the added value of the high-tech manufacturing industry increased by 14.2% year-on-year, and the equipment manufacturing industry increased by 8.1%. The technology-intensive degree of the industry increased steadily.

Fourth, the green and intelligent transformation is driven by enhancement.

With the steady advancement of my country's green development, the accelerated pace of energy green and low-carbon transformation, the expansion of demand for new energy products, and the increased requirements for energy-saving and carbon-reduction transformation in traditional industries, it will drive the growth of related industries.

In the first quarter, the output of new energy vehicles and solar cells in my country increased by 140.8% and 24.3% year-on-year respectively.

The rapid development of 5G network, information technology, and artificial intelligence technology has also spawned new industrial growth points.

In the first quarter, the smart consumer device manufacturing industry grew by more than 10% year-on-year.

Fifth, the dividends of opening to the outside world continued to show.

Although the international environment is complex and severe, in general, the world economy is still recovering, and the demand for my country's export products will still increase.

Under the conditions of the epidemic, my country's export enterprises have a relatively strong ability to adapt to changes in external demand. At the same time, the policy of stabilizing foreign trade has continued to exert force, the results of the joint construction of the "Belt and Road" have continued to show, and the rapid development of new foreign trade formats is conducive to the growth of imports and exports.

In the first quarter, my country's imports and exports increased by 10.7% year-on-year, which was achieved on the basis of the high base of the previous year and fully reflects the resilience of foreign trade development.

Sixth, the macroeconomic policies have continued to be effective.

Since the beginning of this year, in the face of the complex situation, all regions and departments have thoroughly implemented the spirit of the Central Economic Work Conference and the deployment of the government work report, adhered to the principle of stability, and made progress while maintaining stability, actively introduced policies that are conducive to economic stability, and increased support for the real economy. support.

Increase market supply and price stability, especially in response to the recent downward pressure on the economy, we will further increase the implementation of macro policies, arrange ahead and speed up the pace, actively assist market players, ensure food and energy security, and maintain industrial chain supply The chain is stable and the bottom line of people's livelihood is firmly secured.

With the gradual effect of the policy, it will promote the smooth operation of the economy.

In general, my country has a complete industrial system, wide market space for super-large-scale markets, many dividends from reform and opening up, and strong economic governance capabilities, which can effectively deal with various risks and challenges.

From the perspective of the whole year, my country's economy is expected to maintain the momentum of recovery and development.

Of course, we must attach great importance to the current problems. In accordance with the decisions and arrangements of the CPC Central Committee and the State Council, we will continue to coordinate epidemic prevention and control and economic and social development, increase the implementation of macro policies, make every effort to stabilize the macroeconomic market, and strive to achieve the expected goals and tasks for the year. .

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