Xi affirms China’s economic direction

Chinese President Xi Jinping said he won’t let his nation return to its days as a planned economy, pushing back against U.S. criticism that China has failed to deliver on promised changes.

“We’ve come to the understanding that we should not ignore the blindness of the market, nor should we return to the old path of a planned economy,” Xi told political advisers gathered in Beijing for annual legislative sessions on Saturday, according to the official Xinhua news agency. He reiterated the government’s stance that markets should play a “decisive role” in the economy.

The comments come as China, the world’s second-largest economy, faces mounting pushback from the President Donald Trump administration on a variety of issues, including trade and Beijing’s handling of the coronavirus outbreak. The White House last week issued a broad critique of China’s economic and military policies in a report to Congress, including accusations of intellectual property theft and economic protectionism.

Xi said the virus has put considerable pressure on China’s economy and that the country should seek “development in a world that is increasingly unstable and uncertain.” He also listed the risks ahead, including a deepening global recession, a significant drop in trade investment, financial market turmoil, reduced international interactions and rising geopolitical tensions.