Economists, observers say China's robust rebound significant to global economy

BEIJING, April 24 (Xinhua) -- Economists and observers have said that China's robust economic rebound will bring benefits to other economies, highlighting its role in adding impetus to the sluggish global economy.

Kelvin Chisanga, a Zambian social economist, told Xinhua in a recent interview that the good start of the Chinese economy this year heralds great prospects for the economies of other countries in the world.

Chisanga said the recovery is a sign that China is slowly overcoming the adverse effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, commending China's resilience in tackling the challenges.

Data released by the National Bureau of Statistics last week showed that China's GDP grew 4.5 percent year on year in the first quarter, beating the consensus forecast and marking the highest growth in a year.

"In essence, when China is doing very well, we generally expect great growth in other regions," he said, adding that the growth of the Chinese economy has ripple effects, and other countries will undoubtedly benefit from the positive growth.

Echoing his remarks, Javier Noriega, chief economist with the Milan-based investment bank Hildebrandt and Ferrar, told Xinhua, "without a doubt, good news from the Chinese economy is good news for other economies."

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has recently projected a 5.2-percent growth for China in 2023, up from 3 percent last year. The World Bank, meanwhile, expects China's GDP growth to rebound to 5.1 percent in 2023. Both are in line with China's official growth target of around 5 percent.

Steven Barnett, the IMF's senior resident representative in China, said that China's contribution to global economic growth will stand at over one third this year.

"When China grows faster, it really provides a welcome lift for the whole world," Barnett told Xinhua.

"As income in China rises, people in China buy more goods," which would bolster imports and help China's trading partners, said the IMF official. "China's tourists could also travel abroad, the more they travel abroad, the more they spend in other countries."

Barnett noted that IMF research shows that every one percentage point of growth in China boosts 0.3 percentage points of growth in other countries. "So this shows the benefits of faster growth in China for the rest of the world," he said.

Looking ahead, some took an even more upbeat view on the Chinese economy.

"No one will be surprised when China will be the number one in the world with its growth performance in the next five years," said Murat Tufan, an analyst with Turkish broadcaster Ekoturk, expecting institutions such as the IMF and the World Bank to raise China's growth forecasts in the upcoming period.