China Needs to Upgrade Manufacturing to Drive Growth: Economist

With China's traditional economic growth drivers sputtering, the country should further empower its manufacturing sector to remain competitive, according to Zhu Min, a former deputy governor of the People’s Bank of China and deputy managing director of the International Monetary Fund, who spoke at the World Economic Forum in Davos.

As reported by Reuters, Zhu emphasized the crucial role of manufacturing in China’s economic success, urging the country to move up the value chain within the sector.

“Now as we try to digitise manufacturing, in the next 20 years, we’ll make sure ‘made in China’ means cheap, good and hi-tech,” Zhu stated.

China, long recognized as the “world’s factory,” boasts a manufacturing sector currently responsible for roughly 30% of global output. The sheer scale of its manufacturing industry has made it the world’s largest for 15 consecutive years. However, this rapid growth has sparked backlash from other economies, including the United States and Europe, where politicians have accused China of undermining their own manufacturing sectors.

US President Donald Trump, who recently began his second term, has been a prominent proponent of this narrative, claiming that China is siphoning American manufacturing jobs. Zhu Min’s comments come amidst a broader discussion on China’s economic trajectory and its impact on the global stage.