Premier Li Keqiang sought to reassure global investors Thursday, saying that China’s economy is “running within the proper range” while insisting that Beijing would never seek to start a currency war.
“Here’s my message,” Li said at the World Economic Forum’s “Summer Davos” meeting in Dalian, China. “Despite some moderation in speed, performance of the Chinese economy is stable and moving in a positive direction.”
“We also face some difficulties,” he said during the rare public address, “but on the whole, we have more opportunities than challenges.”
Beijing has been working feverishly this summer to confront two such challenges: China’s stock market has tumbled 40% since June, and there are signs that economic growth is slowing more quickly than economists had anticipated.
Experts have known for a long time that China’s growth would slow, especially as Beijing made reforms to shift the country away from relying on building roads, railways and housing to generate growth, to an economy powered by consumer spending.
