The 20^th China Development Forum took place March 23-25, 2019 in Beijing. It is the first major state-level international conference held after the two sessions, and presented an opportunity for participants to discuss opportunities in China and for countries to learn about China’s economic development plans. Participants included Chinese government officials, overseas delegates, corporate executives and scholars. This year’s theme “Greater Opening-up for Win-Win Cooperation.” These are the highlights. China will Open Further and Enhance Support for Foreign Investors China says it will further open its market to foreign investors. Han Wenxiu, Executive Deputy Director of the General Office of the Central Financial and Economics Affairs Commission, listed five ways China will do this:

• Continuing to shorten the Special Administrative Measures on Access to Foreign Investmento open more sectors and ensure foreign investments will be treated the same as domestic.
• Stronger legal protection of intellectual property rights and punishment for infringement.
• Leveling the playing field for foreign and domestic enterprises.
• Creating more opportunities and platforms for trilateral and multi-party cooperation.
• Taking on the issues of the trade balance and supply-side structural reforms.
• Bringing China’s economic system line with international standards.

China will Boost Domestic Consumption through Multiple Initiatives China’s domestic consumption spending is now the second-highest in the world, and China will need to adapt its economic model to suit the changing needs of the population, according to Jizhe Ning, Deputy Director of the National Development and Reform Commission. Ning mentioned three ways China will do this:

• Implement a three-year action plan to increase household income to boost disposable income and consumption power.
• Accelerate the development of tourism, culture, healthcare and some other areas to boost the service economy.
• Further integrate online and offline on retail.

China will Drive Artificial Intelligence in the Future China will seek to drive a new generation of artificial intelligence (AI) innovation and development, according to Ning. A few business leaders also shared opinions regarding AI:

• Robin Li, CEO of Baidu, commented that China is embracing autonomous driving, artificial audio intelligence and cloud computing.
• Kai-Fu Lee, CEO of Sinovation Ventures, mentioned that China has 17 unicorns (startups valued at $1 billion or more) involved in AI, and that AI will gradually enter mainstream Chinese companies.
• Harald Krueger, Chairman of BMW Group, commented that he believes China is in a leading position in AI, and will take huge strides on smart city initiatives in the next few years.

China will Accelerate 5G Commercialization China will speed up the commercialization of 5G as China’s development of advanced wireless technology enters its final phase, and this can facilitate more Internet-based industrial applications. To enable this, China will push integration of 5G technology and set up pilot projects in key companies, according to Wang Xinzhe, Chief Economist at China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology. Potential Exists for the Greater Bay Area to be Silicon Valley and Wall Street of the East In our report The Greater Bay Area or China’s Silicon Valley: What is it, How Will it Develop and How Can Businesses Benefit, we explained how China aims to position the Greater Bay Area as China’s version of Silicon Valley. Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-Ngor, Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR), explained why the Greater Bay Area can also be the “Wall Street of the East” in relation to Hong Kong:

• A deep and liquid capital market, which could help promote commercial applications of technology through private equity funds or listing.
• Policies to promote innovation and technology, including tax deductions to encourage private enterprise to invest in R&D.
• Initiatives such as a new listing regime to accommodate innovative companies.
• Supporting the Faster Payment System to enable the public to transfer funds anytime anywhere.

Key Insights The China Development Forum showcased China’s efforts to further open its economy by enhancing support to foreign investors, driving growth through domestic consumption, promoting AI, accelerating 5G commercialization and leveraging the Greater Bay Area to be the Silicon Valley and Wall Street of the East.