Premier Li Qiang said innovation-led growth and broader market access can create global opportunities, as China rolls out a 15-measure foreign investment plan and highlights trade and FDI figures.
Chinese Premier Li Qiang used the opening of the 17th Annual Meeting of the New Champions in Dalian to argue that "China Opportunity 2.0" offers companies worldwide innovation-driven support and attractive investment prospects, pushing back on what he described as a "China Shock 2.0" narrative. Li said China’s economy has shown stability, innovation, vitality and deeper integration with the world at the start of the 15th Five-Year Plan period for 2026-2030, and framed innovation-led development as central to the country’s long-term resilience and steady growth. He also said China’s economic stability has acted as a "safe harbor" in a more uncertain global environment. The article says China is pairing that message with further opening up. It cites zero-tariff treatment for 63 countries, imports ranking second globally for 17 straight years, and a 20.5% year-on-year rise in imports in the first five months of this year, outpacing export growth. It also points to policy moves including pilot free-trade zones, the Hainan Free Trade Port, and wider market access in education, finance and healthcare, alongside a 15-measure action plan issued this week to stabilize and improve foreign investment. Ministry of Commerce figures cited in the article show foreign-invested enterprises in China reached 533,000 by the end of 2025, up an average 4.5% annually from the end of 2020, while foreign direct investment stock (total accumulated overseas investment) neared $4 trillion with average annual growth of 3.6% over the same five-year period. The three-day Summer Davos event, themed "Innovating at Scale," is bringing together more than 1,700 participants from over 90 countries and regions. Wu Chun, the managing partner for China at Boston Consulting Group, said China’s market is "irreplaceable," adding that multinational companies are drawing momentum from the country’s consumer base, changing industrial demand and willingness to adopt new technologies and products. Li closed by urging global businesses to seize opportunities created by China’s development.