Chinese leaders making strong basis for future growth, Mike Bloomberg Says

Michael Bloomberg, founder of Bloomberg L.P and former mayor of New York City. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

Chinese leaders are making a very smart investment for their future and are building strong foundation for the next generation of the Chinese economic growth, said Michael Bloomberg, founder of Bloomberg L.P and former mayor of New York City.

"China’s ambitious one belt one road initiative, to put into prospective, covers the areas that include 50 percent of the world GDP and is about the same share as world trade," he said at Bloomberg global roadshow, themed "China: Navigate the New Silk Road," in London yesterday.

China’s One Belt, One Road initiative envisages the creation of a modern version of the old Silk Route, with maritime and land routes linking China and Europe.

China and quite a number of countries along the proposed routes have aligned their respective development strategies, and signed more than 30 memoranda of understanding and cooperation agreements, including seven European countries. A number of key cooperation projects have been launched in collaboration with countries along the Belt and Road routes.

Bloomberg said the Belt and Road initiative opens opportunities for trade and investment between East and West and will trigger major expansion of Chinese infrastructure investment throughout the region, will be one of the best ways to spur growth and raise living standards.

"It will impact the flow of goods across larger areas of the world, from Asia to Europe to Africa. It far outreaches implications for financial and industrial companies and I think it’s critically important that global companies and investors understand the plan and the opportunities it presents," he added.

As trading partners, such as China, the USA, and the UK, it is inevitably that there will be disagreements just as the way it is with family or friends, Bloomberg said, adding "if everybody acts as an adult, I do not think why everybody cannot profit."

Zhang Jiming, minister counsellor from the Chinese Embassy to the UK, who also attended the event, shared Bloomberg’s view about China’s Road and Belt initiative.

"The Initiative of Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st-Century Maritime Silk Road, which was put forward by President Xi Jinping in 2013, has met with great enthusiasm and support from more than 70 countries and international organizations," Zhang said.

Zhang emphasized that the initiative is to realize common development through win-win cooperation, of which he highlighted three key elements: connectivity, the cooperation of industrial capacity, and people-to-people links and cultural exchanges.

"The Belt and Road Initiative reflects openness in China’s vision and action, and most importantly the open nature of its economy. While against some headwinds externally and domestically, China remains the powerhouse of the world economy," he added.

Zhang said a 6.9 percent GDP growth by China last year is neither alarming nor insignificant, as every percentage of GDP growth in China now is equivalent to 2.5 percentage points a decade ago.

He is confident that while risks and challenges exist, there will be no economic hard landing in China, and the Chinese economy will continue a growth of mid to high rate for a considerable period of time.

Earlier this week, Bloomberg, mayor of New York for three consecutive terms, announced that he would not be running for the President of the United States, concluding that a three-way race with Hillary Clinton would only benefit controversial businessman Donald Trump and therefore threaten the domestic stability and national security of the United States.