China will try to record positive economic growth for 2020 despite the adverse impact of the new coronavirus disease on the global economy, Premier Li Keqiang said on Thursday
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 28th May, 2020) China will try to record positive economic growth for 2020 despite the adverse impact of the new coronavirus disease on the global economy, Premier Li Keqiang said on Thursday.
As part of the government's measures to cope with the devastating economic blow dealt by COVID-19, the Chinese authorities proposed a plan to safeguard six key elements of the country's economy, including employment, people's basic livelihood, the core market, food and energy security, the stable operation of the supply chain and smooth grassroots operations.
"If we complete the tasks from the 'six safeguards,' especially the first three tasks, China's economy would achieve positive growth this year. We will even try to reach a certain level and push forward the stable growth of China's economy," Li said during a press conference following the closing ceremony of the National People's Congress.
Li also explained the reasons behind China's decision to not set a GDP growth target this year.
"Many major international organizations have predicted that the global economy could contract by 3 percent or even more. China's economy has been deeply integrated into the global economy. It is impossible for us to stay out of it. We did not set a quantified target for the GDP growth this year. This is also sticking to the truth," he said.
Strict lockdown measures in response to COVID-19 have driven China's economy into an unprecedented 6 percent year-on-year contraction in the first quarter this year.
