Huge potential for Sino-US cooperation
China seen remaining major source of global innovation in variety of fields
The Chinese economy is full of vitality and there is huge potential for Sino-US cooperation in various advanced technologies, such as electric vehicles, despite geopolitical complexities and challenges, said Sevin Yeltekin, dean of the University of Rochester Simon Business School.
“There’s a tremendous amount of dynamism. There’s a tremendous amount of adaptation of technology more than I’ve seen elsewhere as well, and an incredibly driven, welleducated workforce,” Yeltekin told China Daily in an exclusive interview, adding she is “very positive” about the outlook of China’s economic growth.
“When you think about what really drives long-run growth trends in any economy, it is productivity, capital and labor investment. And those are continuing,” she said, adding that the continued investment in productive capital and technology, innovation and education is expected to drive China’s sustainable growth.
Yeltekin said China will continue to play an “extremely significant” role in global industrial and supply chains as the scale of the world’s second-largest economy is very large, and its scale of manufacturing and services is very hard to replicate anywhere else.
As for the tightened export controls by the United States on some crucial technologies, including high-end chips to China, Yeltekin said, “Any barriers anybody puts up in front of any kind of cooperation can hurt both sides,” and there’s going to be a lot of push from those who are developing these technologies to cooperate, to be able to reach different markets and to learn from each other.
“I think those forces are what’s going to, in the end, win out from both sides of the equation because there is mutual benefit to be able to cooperate, share technologies and to really advance business productivity and the human condition — the living conditions and opportunities for all populations involved,” she added.
Despite concerns over impending recessions and continuing supply chain disruptions, Yeltekin remains optimistic about prospects for the global economy, given that there is an incredibly resilient consumer group, and technological change and innovation will drive economies worldwide.
Noting that innovation is a key driver of economic growth, Yeltekin said whether it’s technological innovation or marrying technology with human productivity, digital transformation has been in China and it’s accelerating with the introduction of artificial intelligence tools and a variety of very advanced products.
She also said it is always good to see a lot of advancement and healthy competition with respect to the technologies. Yeltekin said she knows about China’s dual carbon goals, and to be able to become sustainable requires a lot of innovation and investment in renewable energy sources and technologies, while China is taking the lead in the EV sector, which is going to be a very good place for China and the US to cooperate and work together.
In addition, the prospects for Sino-US cooperation in education and talent cultivation are broad, Yeltekin said, adding that Chinese business talent are not only datasavvy and tech-savvy, but also globally informed and agile, and very fluid in being able to both understand differentiated needs and work with people from a variety of cultures and backgrounds, with a willingness to adapt to new technologies and knowledge.
Thanks to improved productivity, broad industrial clusters and a well-established infrastructure, China was, is, and will remain the factory of the world, said Denis Depoux, global managing director of market consultancy Roland Berger. The combination of a broad local market and a strong legacy export base makes China difficult to replace.
“Technology and innovation are key to bringing disruptive changes to the Chinese economy. We have seen China leapfrogging in some new areas, such as EVs, energy storage, photovoltaics and wind power,” Depoux said.
He added that China is an important source of global innovation in multiple fields, from payment, retail and e-commerce to the electric vehicle, value chain and energy transition, and operating in China is a source of global competitiveness.