Booming private sector, testament to China's economic potential

On Feb. 17, Chinese President Xi Jinping attended a symposium on private enterprises and delivered an important speech. He stressed that on the new journey of the new era, the private economy has broad development prospects and immense potential, and it is the perfect time for private companies and entrepreneurs to fully demonstrate their prowess.

The international community closely followed the symposium, interpreting it as a strong signal of China's firm commitment to promoting the healthy and high-quality development of the private sector, further boosting the confidence of global investors in China's economic outlook.

Vehicles are loaded onto the "BYD Hefei" cargo ship at the Haitong International Automotive Terminal in the Taicang port zone of Suzhou Port, east China's Jiangsu province. (People's Daily Online/Ji Haixin)

Against the backdrop of an international landscape fraught with instability and uncertainty, international markets are filled with concerns. The world is looking to China, expecting it to continue playing its role as a major engine of world economic growth and providing much-needed stability to the international community.

China's performance has lived up to the world's expectations. From record-breaking box office revenue during the 2025 Spring Festival holiday to the global buzz surrounding Chinese AI models and humanoid robots, the international community has not only observed the strong momentum of China's private sector but also the bright prospects of the Chinese economy.

It was stressed at the symposium that the basic principles and policies regarding the development of the private sector cannot and will not be changed, highlighting the "stability" of China's economic policies.

The Chinese government has placed great emphasis on the development of private enterprises and the private economy. China's private sector boasts a considerable scale and carries heavy weight, laying a solid foundation for advancing the high-quality development of the private sector. By the end of September 2024, private enterprises accounted for a steady 92.3 percent of total enterprises registered in China.

Photo shows employees working in a workshop of a private electronics company in Huaying, southwest China's Sichuan province. (People's Daily Online/Qiu Haiying)

China has been steadily introducing measures such as formulating a private sector promotion law and setting up dedicated institutions to support the private sector's development, ensuring that private enterprises are empowered to thrive on an even broader stage.

The private enterprises participating in this symposium spanned a wide range of industries, from strategic emerging sectors to traditional manufacturing and agriculture. These sectors represent new quality productive forces, highlighting the "innovation" driving China's economic growth.

Companies like BYD, which has contributed to China's new energy vehicle sector development through its R&D and innovation, and New Hope Group, a long-standing player in agriculture and animal husbandry that continues to revitalize the traditional industry through innovation, exemplify the ingenuity of Chinese private enterprises - an ingenuity that has captured the world's attention.

As the Chinese economy shifts to a stage of high-quality development, private enterprises will play an even greater role in technological innovation, green development, and the digital economy.

As The Australian Financial Review reported, China has no shortage of eager venture capitalists and smart young entrepreneurs, and the sense of optimism, excitement and energy that characterized earlier periods of China's economic reforms is still widespread.

Citizens shop mobile phones in a store of Chinese smartphone manufacturer Huawei in Shapingba district, southwest China's Chongqing municipality. (People's Daily Online/Sun Kaifang)

Chinese private enterprises have flourished along with China's grand journey of reform and opening up, nurturing a spirit of open cooperation in the country's open and inclusive environment.

These businesses are actively expanding their global presence, forging international partnerships in fields ranging from AI and cross-border e-commerce to high-end manufacturing and clean energy. They have not only provided consumers around the world with a broader range of options, but also strengthened their international competitiveness in a globalized market, expanded their growth potential, and climbed higher in the global industrial and value chains.

International analysts described the new generation of Chinese private entrepreneurs as "born global entrepreneurs," highlighting their ability to leverage the vast Chinese domestic market to quickly achieve economies of scale before shifting focus to global expansion and securing a foothold in international markets.

The dynamism of China's private sector is a testament to the resilience and potential of the Chinese economy. On the new journey of the new era, China's productive forces will make new strides, people's living standards will improve steadily, and reform and opening up will be further deepened in an all-around way. These advantages will create abundant new opportunities and greater headroom for the growth of the private sector, and China's high-quality development will also provide the world with greater confidence in the future.