Chinese President Xi Jinping propounded the idea of “new quality productive forces” in September 2023 as a blueprint for future Chinese economic development during a tour in Heilongjiang province.1 The communique of the 20th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) of the Third Plenum session, held in Beijing from 15 to 18 July 2024 declared that

We will improve the institutions and mechanisms for fostering new quality productive forces in line with local conditions so to fully stimulate the assimilation between ‘real economy’ and ‘digital economy’, including service sector, infrastructure and supply chains.2

The promulgation of “new quality productive forces” is unsurprising as it comes when several economists and institutions like the International Monetary Fund have expressed reservations about the deep structural reforms needed within China, including the financial sector3 and challenges from demographic changes and climate change.4 Economists have cautioned that if China wants to maintain a sustained growth rate then it “has to move to a growth model that is based more on innovation and productivity increase than in the past”.5

Improving or maintaining the quality of economic and social development is a common goal pursued by all countries in the world. China in the 1970s under the leadership of Deng Xiaoping initiated reforms and opened up its economy to the world. Since then, high growth rates have been a major feature of the Chinese economy. At the 19th National Congress of CPC in 2017, however, China announced the transitioning of its economic development from a period of “rapid growth to a stage of high-quality development”.6

In other words, China is seeking not merely growth but better growth and quality over quantity, which it will drive mainly by ‘emerging industries’ and ‘future oriented industries’ which include artificial intelligence, robotic, quantum technology, etc. Besides, outdated production industries and equipment will be discontinued and replaced by ‘green emerging industries’. In high-quality development, the fundamental aspect is green development where it will develop a “harmonious relationship between humans and nature”. To accomplish the objective of high-quality development in China, the “new quality productive forces”, have been propounded which essentially refer to,........

© IDSA