In the Xi Jinping era, China has struggled to balance how its economic ambitions play beyond its borders. What may look like savvy reform plans in Beijing can easily get lost in translation abroad.
Case in point: Communist Party leader Xi is assuming even greater control over China Inc even as insiders argue new Premier Li Qiang is about to fundamentally reform the nation’s economic model.
Yet the Asian Development Bank’s (ADB) latest growth outlook reminds Xi of China’s best hope of bridging the perception gap: being the economic engine the region desperately needs in 2023.
Weekend news from petroleum exporting nations darkened Asia’s growth prospects. The move by OPEC+ nations — including Russia — to cut production by roughly 1.2 million barrels per day could not be more perilously timed for export-reliant nations struggling amid global inflation.
