Kristalina Georgieva’s remarks at Beijing conference come as China export glut tensions rise
Kristalina Georgieva, managing director of the International Monetary Fund, delivers a speech during the annual meeting of the China Development Forum at the Diaoyutai Guesthouse in Beijing. Photograph: Wu Hao/EPAChina’s economy is at a “fork in the road” where it must choose between past policies or “pro-market reforms” to unlock growth, IMF managing director Kristalina Georgieva said on Sunday, as calls grow for Beijing to do more to boost domestic demand.
Opened by China’s premier, Li Qiang, the country’s number two official, this year’s forum is being attended by global chief executives including Apple’s Tim Cook, ExxonMobil’s Darren Woods and HSBC’s Noel Quinn.Mr Li promised that Beijing would prepare regulations to smooth market access for foreign enterprises and efforts to boost domestic consumption.
Beijing has set a growth target of 5 per cent for this year, the same as in 2023 but low compared with previous years, and analysts expect the economy to slow further in the medium term on the back of a property downturn and demographic decline.China has responded by promising to invest more in manufacturing and infrastructure but economists are calling for it to do more to stimulate domestic demand.
These would include reducing the stock of unfinished housing left over from its real estate crisis and “giving more space for market based corrections in the property sector”.