Commentary: New pattern crucial for China's high-quality development

This aerial photo taken on Dec. 10, 2022 shows a view of the Yangpu international container terminal in the Yangpu Economic Development Zone, south China's Hainan Province. (Xinhua/Pu Xiaoxu)

BEIJING, Feb. 28 (Xinhua) -- The Chinese leadership has placed the new development pattern high on the country's policy agenda, according to which the domestic market is taken as the country's economic mainstay with domestic and foreign markets complementing each other.

Accelerating the establishment of a new development pattern is a strategic decision for the country's long-term development and security.

Only by doing so can China consolidate the foundation for its economy and enhance the security and stability of its development. China's capability to deal with predictable and unpredictable storms and high winds can also be strengthened in the fostering of a new development pattern.

As the world's most populous country, China enjoys a massive domestic market, on the basis of which a virtuous circle of goods production, circulation, distribution and consumption should be enhanced. That lays a solid foundation for China's high-quality development.

Over the past Spring Festival holiday, the first since China optimized its COVID response, the country witnessed a booming domestic market and expanding consumption in various sectors such as tourism, box office, retail and catering.

About 308 million domestic tourism trips were made during the seven-day holiday, up by 23.1 percent year on year. The holiday box office generated a whopping revenue of 6.76 billion yuan (about 970 million U.S. dollars), the second highest in history for the same period.

Demand drives supply and supply creates demand. Efforts should be made to coordinate the expansion of domestic demand and the deepening of supply-side structural reform, so as to create a higher-level dynamic balance and achieve a virtuous cycle in the national economy.

Electric vehicle (EV) brands have sprung up across the nation, providing a number of new options for Chinese consumers. China's production and sales of new-energy vehicles reached 7.05 million and 6.88 million, respectively, in 2022, both registering growth of over 90 percent year on year, according to the China Machinery Industry Federation.

Consumption is a constant driver of the economy. The promising signs mentioned above have ensured a good momentum for China's economic growth. To further tap into the potential of the domestic market, the country's vast rural areas, home to hundreds of millions of residents, cannot be neglected.

The coordinated development of urban and rural areas, as well as of different regions, should be advanced. On the one hand, China's rural areas shoulder the responsibility of producing enough food to feed its population. On the other hand, rural vitalization will unleash a strong consumption power for China's post-pandemic growth.

Along with the rising income of rural residents, China's rural consumption is expected to accelerate upgrading, and 2 trillion yuan in new consumption demand is expected to be created annually, Minister of Agriculture and Rural Affairs Tang Renjian said.

Emphasizing the domestic market doesn't mean the international market is no longer important. The various comparative advantages, division of labor, and supply and industrial chain cooperation have made the global economy operate in a more efficient way.

China has benefited greatly from its reform and opening-up over a period of 40-plus years, in terms of exporting and attracting foreign investment. China is determined to continue the policy and improve mechanisms regarding intellectual property rights protection, market access and fair competition, so as to nurture a more favorable environment for all types of market entities.

The rebound of the Chinese economy has attracted new interest among international investors. The foreign direct investment into the Chinese mainland, in actual use, expanded 14.5 percent year on year to 127.69 billion yuan in January, according to the Ministry of Commerce.

The year 2023 will mark the 10th anniversary of the proposal of the Belt and Road Initiative, a prominent achievement of China's opening-up and international cooperation in recent years. China has signed over 200 cooperation agreements with 151 countries and 32 international organizations so far. China's active participation in global trade and economy not only boosts the country's development, but also contributes to global economic growth.