Chinese Prime Minister Li Qiang warned on Wednesday that global trade tensions “intensified” when talking about the opening ceremony of the World Economic Forum.
Officials including Singapore Prime Minister Lawrence Wong attended one of the people who gathered in the northern port city of Tianjin this week, commonly known as the “Summer Davos.”
Lee said the global economy is “experienced profound changes”, a thin mention of swing tariffs imposed by U.S. President Donald Trump.
“Trade protectionist measures are increasing significantly, and global economic and trade frictions are intensifying,” Lee added.
“The global economy is fully integrated and no country can grow or prosper alone,” he said.
Lee added: “When the global economy faces difficulties, what we need is not the laws of jungle law, where the victims of vulnerable groups are strong, but the win-win results of cooperation and common success.”
Beijing’s second-ranked official also painted bullish pictures of China’s economy, the world’s second-largest economy, which has been plagued by slowing growth and a slump in consumer spending.
“China’s economy continues to grow steadily, providing strong support for accelerating the recovery of the global economy,” he said.
He added that Beijing is “increasing our efforts to implement our strategy to expand domestic demand.”
Li said this is “a major consumer power based on the solid foundation of China’s growth promotion.”
Beijing is growing at about 5% this year, a goal that many economists believe is an ambitious goal.
Since the second half of last year, officials have introduced a series of steps aimed at increasing spending, including steps to lower key interest rates and encourage home purchases.
But the results are different, just as the additional pressure on trade by U.S. tariffs could hit the country’s massive manufacturing industry.
“My First” method
Lee’s speech at the WEF gathering aims to portray China as a staunch defender of a rules-based international trading system that is under attack from the Trump administration.
At a meeting in Beijing, President Xi Jinping responded to his comments on the prince of Singapore, calling on these countries to resist “return to hegemony” and protectionism.
Other leaders on Wednesday were upset by other leaders who were forced to choose between superpowers in a new historical period, and were marked by increased division and conflict.
Wong told WEF President and CEO Borge Brende in a public discussion that the government should be cautious about “abandoning the concept of economic integration.”
“Integration does not guarantee peace, but I think that certainly gives us a better chance of peace than the ‘my first’ approach,” he said.
Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh caused a similar chord, pointing out that the United States is Vietnam’s largest export market and China is the largest source of imports.
Asked about the recent trade frictions, Chinh said his country needs to adopt a “balanced” foreign policy to make it “friends of all countries.”
He added: “We have a good balance, but we still need to be prepared because things have become tough lately.”
