MNI BRIEF: China To Reach Target of 5% GDP Growth - Lou Jiwei

China can achieve its annual economic growth target of about 5% set at the beginning of the year despite headwinds, while the financial sector should enhance support to the economy to better serve global economic resilience and stability, said China's former Minister of Finance Lou Jiwei during the 2023 Shanghai Suhewan Conference on Sunday.

The Chinese economy faces several challenges as consumption remains soft which has weakened the domestic economic cycle. Some crucial industries like real estate are going through cyclical and structural turning points, while pressure to prevent and resolve debt risk remains, including local governments off-book debt, said Lou, now chairman of the Global Asset Management Forum.

He called on the financial sector to help the real economy further, promote global cooperation and play a more proactive role in areas such as technological innovation, industrial development and the green and low-carbon transformation of the economy as global society is under the continuous impact of trade protectionism, the COVID-19 pandemic, and geopolitical conflicts.