The Global Significance of Chinese Modernization: From an Economic Perspective

China is a major country with global influence. The sheer size of it determines that the complexity and difficulty of achieving modernization in China are unprecedented， and so are the significance and influence of Chinese modernization. As the most grand-scale and unique innovation in human history， Chinese modernization indeed has comprehensive and profound significance for the world economy.

Chinese Modernization Provides New Opportunities for the Common Development of All Countries in the World

In pursuing Chinese modernization， China takes the building of a" community with a shared future for mankind as an essential requirement， and adheres to the development logic that “China can only do well when the world is doing well. When China does well， the world will get even better.” China always places its own development within the context of development of the mankind， continuously offering new opportunities for world development with new achievements in its modernization， and striving to ensure that more outcomes of modernization will be shared more fairly by people across the world.

First， China’s sustained stable growth drives global economic recovery. In recent years， the world economy has faced insufficient momentum and sluggish growth. However， the growth rate of the Chinese economy has remained at a relatively high level， ranking among the top in major economies and injecting strong impetus into the world. From 2012 to 2021， the average growth rate of the Chinese economy was 6.6%， leading the world’s major economies， and far exceeding the global average of 2.6% and the average of 3.7% in developing economies during the same period. Practice has fully proven that the Chinese economy is resilient， full of potential and has ample room for maneuver. The long-term sound fundamentals of China have not changed and will not change. China is more confident and capable of achieving sustained stable development， bringing much-needed certainty to the uncertain world economy.

China’s rapid economic growth has had a significant ripple effect on surrounding economies. Data from the World Bank shows that for every 1 percentage point increase in China’s GDP， the GDP of Singapore， Malaysia， Indonesia， the Philippines and Thailand will increase by 1.3， 0.8， 0.6， 0.5 and 0.4 percentage points respectively. As the world’s second-largest economy， the largest manufacturer， the largest goods trading nation， the second-largest consumer market and the largest holder of foreign exchange reserves， China is a major trading partner of more than 150 countries and regions. On the new journey， Chinese modernization takes high-quality development as its primary task， accelerates the transformation of old and new growth drivers， continuously explores new fields and tracks for development， and works to shape new growth advantages. This will undoubtedly create more new space and opportunities for global economic recovery.

Second， China’s innovation-driven development empowers world economic growth. Since the new era， China has been implementing the innovation-driven development strategy and achieved fruitful results in high-quality development. In 2023， China’s Ramp;D intensity reached 2.64%， exceeding the average level of EU countries. Its Global Innovation Index ranking rose from 34th in 2012 to 11th in 2024. Strengthened basic research and original innovation have led to a series of important breakthroughs in key and core technologies， with significant progress in the research and development of high-end equipment such as aircraft engines， gas turbines and fourth-generation nuclear power units. Innovative achievements in cutting-edge fields such as artificial intelligence and quantum technology have continued to emerge， and strategic emerging industries have continued to grow robustly. Scientific and technological innovation， along with the development of new productive forces， has become a crucial foundation for high-quality economic development.

Internationally， China advocates that technological progress is a global and epochal task， and endeavors to build a globally interconnected network of science and technology and foster an open and inclusive ecosystem for international science and technology cooperation. By August 2024， China had established science and technology cooperation relations with over 160 countries and regions， signed 118 inter-governmental science and technology cooperation agreements， launched the construction of more than 50 joint laboratories under the Belt and Road Initiative， promoted the establishment of the South-South Cooperation Center for Technology Transfer， and implemented joint demonstration projects of renewable energy technology transfer. All of these efforts have made tangible contributions to global innovation and development.

Third， China’s green development facilitates global economic transformation. Harmonious coexistence between humanity and nature is a distinctive feature of Chinese modernization. Since the new era， China has coordinated high-quality development and high-level environmental protection， and balanced domestic development with international responsibilities， initiating a profound revolution in the concept of development. Domestically， China has continued to promote green and low-carbon economic and social development， focused on building a green， low-carbon and circular economic system， effectively reduced the resource and environmental costs of development， and continuously enhanced the potential and stamina of development. From 2013 to 2023， China’s average annual energy consumption growth rate of 3.3% supported an average annual economic growth rate of 6.1%， and the energy consumption intensity decreased by 26.1% in total， making China one of the fastest countries to lower energy intensity. All of these have spoken volumes about the significant achievements made in the green and low-carbon transformation of China’s economy and society.

Internationally， China has actively promoted the adoption and effective implementation of the Paris Agreement on climate change， pledged to achieve carbon peak by 2030 and carbon neutrality by 2060， and is committed to being an active advocate and pragmatic actor in green development. In 2023， the total export of the “new trio”， represented by new energy vehicles， lithium batteries and photovoltaic products， reached 1.06 trillion yuan， exceeding the one trillion yuan mark for the first time， with a year-on-year growth of 29.9%， leading in the international market share. More importantly， China has formed a large-scale development increment in the fields of green infrastructure， green energy， green transportation and green living. These efforts have created more economic growth points， and greatly enriched the international market supply， alleviating world inflationary pressure and providing an important driving force for the comprehensive green transformation of global economic and social development.

Fourth， China’s open development promotes economic globalization. The practice of contemporary world economic development shows that an economy with high-quality development must be an economy with a high level of openness. Openness is a distinctive hallmark of Chinese modernization. Only an open China can become a modernized China. China has steadily expanded institutional opening up， established 22 free trade pilot zones in batches， and built the Hainan Free Trade Port， making them the “vanguards” and “pioneers” of China’s all-round opening up. China has taken the initiative to connect with international high-standard economic and trade rules， implemented the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership （RCEP） agreement with high quality， actively promoted the process of joining high-standard economic and trade rules such as the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership （CPTPP） and the Digital Economy Partnership Agreement （DEPA）， and expanded the global network of high-standard free trade areas. China has continuously expanded its voluntary openness and unilateral openness to the least developed countries， striving to promote the shared openness of the world through positive interaction.

China adheres to an open-door policy in its development and continuously improves its business environment. Since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China， China has actively promoted the implementation of high-level investment liberalization and facilitation policies and optimized the foreign investment environment. It has reasonably reduced the negative list of foreign investment access， completely removed restrictions on foreign investment access in the manufacturing sector， and steadily expanded market access. It has successively introduced laws and regulations such as the Foreign Investment Law and the Regulations on Optimizing the Business Environment， improved the business environment system， and created a world-class international business environment that is market-oriented and law-based. By doing so， China has burnished the brand of “Invest in China”.

Chinese Modernization Explores New Solutions for Improving the Global Economic Governance System

The successful advancement of Chinese modernization is closely related to the global economic governance system. Advocating a global economic governance of equality， openness， cooperation and sharing， China has made important explorations and positive contributions to solving the governance deficits in the fields of trade， finance and development， and promoted the establishment of an inclusive and balanced global economic governance system.

First， China helps improve the global trade governance system. When the multilateral trade system is facing the impact of anti-globalization， China， following the trend of economic globalization and historical development， has actively fulfilled its WTO accession commitments， upheld the core position of the WTO in the multilateral trade system， which not only expanded the development space for Chinese modernization， but also contributed Chinese strength to improving the global trade governance system.

China has vigorously practiced the principles of non-discrimination， reciprocity and transparency， and fully fulfilled its WTO accession commitments. By the end of July 2024， its overall tariff level had dropped to 7.3%， close to the average level of developed countries， setting an example in upholding the core values and basic principles of the WTO， safeguarding its authority and effectiveness， and making positive contributions to ensuring the stable development of the multilateral trading system. China has taken the initiative to launch or participate in open plurilateral negotiations within the WTO， taken the lead in setting up and successfully completed the negotiations on the Investment Facilitation for Development Agreement， and participated in the completion of the negotiations on domestic regulations on trade in services and global digital trade rules， playing a key role in revitalizing the WTO’s negotiation function and promoting trade and investment liberalization and facilitation.

Second， China actively participates in improving global financial governance. As the world’s largest developing country， China has carried out fruitful cooperation with global financial institutions such as the World Bank， the International Monetary Fund and the Bank for International Settlements in the process of its modernization. With the deepening of Chinese modernization， China is having more proactive， in-depth and vigorous participation in global financial governance.

On the one hand， based on the changes in the world economic landscape， China is committed to promoting the reform of the existing international financial architecture， ensuring sufficient resources for the financial safety net while making the representation of the international financial architecture more reasonable. On the other hand， China has actively advocated the establishment of new international financial institutions， setting a precedent for developing countries to form multilateral financial institutions， injecting new vitality into improving global financial governance and promoting world economic development. China proposed the establishment of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank， providing new impetus for promoting economic and social development in Asia and beyond. China promoted the establishment of the New Development Bank of the BRICS countries， offering strong financing support for the development of infrastructure construction， clean energy， environmental protection， digital infrastructure and many other fields in BRICS countries. China established equity investment institutions such as the Silk Road Fund and the China-Africa Fund for Production Capacity Cooperation， providing investment and financing support for international economic and trade cooperation and bilateral and multilateral connectivity.

Third， China vigorously promotes international development cooperation. As the world’s largest developing country， China has always been an advocate， promoter and practitioner of the cause of global poverty reduction and development， supporting and helping other developing countries， especially the least developed countries， to eradicate poverty. China has historically resolved the problem of absolute poverty， achieving the poverty reduction goal of the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development 10 years ahead of schedule， and contributing more than 70% to global poverty reduction.

China has solemnly put forward the Global Development Initiative （GDI）. By the end of 2024， over 1，100 projects had been carried out under the framework of the initiative， and more than 600 projects had been implemented in the global development project database， which has injected strong impetus into global economic growth. China has announced eight actions to support global development， including implementing the GDI. On the basis of over 1，100 development projects already in operation， China will make sure the Global South research center that is being built is fit for purpose， and the $20 billion of development funds will continue to be put to good use to support developing countries and deepen practical cooperation in areas such as poverty reduction， food security and the digital economy. These actions have been highly appreciated and widely welcomed by the international community， especially developing countries. From hosting the world’s first import-themed expo to organizing the China International Consumer Products Expo， China International Supply Chain Expo， China-ASEAN Expo， China-CEEC Expo， China-Eurasia Expo and the China-South Asia Expo， China has successfully held various international exhibitions with unique features， building new high-quality platforms at different levels and in different fields for international cooperation， truly turning China’s vast market into a great opportunity for the world and promoting global economic circulation and joint development through concrete actions.

Chinese Modernization Provides New Options for Countries to Explore the Path to Modernization

Modernization is the historical process of human society transforming from traditional civilization to modern civilization. Achieving modernization is an inevitable path for the development of all countries in the world， but the ways and means of achieving it vary. As a new path to modernization， Chinese modernization has a profound impact on the world modernization process and holds significant implications for enriching and developing human civilization.

First， Chinese modernization breaks Western discourse monopoly on modernization and reshapes the landscape of world modernization. Modernization originated in the West and is a historical product of the development of productive forces to a certain stage. Chinese modernization has broken the identity restrictions and fixed models of achieving modernization， declaring that there is neither a one-size-fits-all modernization model in the world nor a universal modernization standard. It has ideologically shattered the Western monopoly on modernization， providing new paths for countries and nations in the world that while hope to accelerate development and maintain their own independence. It has opened up new options for maintaining modernization in the mankind， offering important exemplary significance for developing countries on their paths to modernization.

Chinese modernization has" changed the world modernization landscape. So far， there are less than 30 industrialized countries in the world， with a total population of no more than one billion. Before China achieved modernization， the world’s modernization was only limited to a few people. With more than 1.4 billion people in China moving into modern society as a whole， exceeding the total population of existing developed countries， Chinese modernization will be the largest-scale modernization in human history， which is an unprecedented event in the history of human development. A country of such a large scale stepping into modernization has changed the world modernization landscape centered on the West and promoted the world modernization process to a more balanced direction.

Second， Chinese modernization explores a new path of modernization and enriches the world modernization theory. China has a vast territory， a large population and huge regional differences. Achieving modernization in such an ultra-large country is a global and century-spanning challenge. The path of Chinese modernization has gone through more than a century of arduous exploration， with deepening understanding， maturing strategies and enriching practices， initially forming a theoretical system of modernization with Chinese characteristics.

Chinese modernization has opened up a new path for driving countries to modernization and enriched the scientific methods of achieving modernization. The development of Western developed countries is a “serial” process， with industrialization， urbanization， agricultural modernization and informatization developing in sequence. China’s development is a “parallel” process， with industrialization， informatization， urbanization and agricultural modernization developing simultaneously. In just a few decades， in many aspects， China has gone through the development process that took Western developed countries hundreds of years， creating the miracle of rapid economic development and long-term social stability. China has abandoned the old Western path of modernization centered on capital， or based on polarization， materialism expansion， external expansion and plunder. It has successfully advanced Chinese modernization with five characteristics： a huge population， common prosperity for all， coordination of material and cultural-ethical advancement， harmony between humanity and nature， and peaceful development. This presents a brand-new vision of human modernization， a major innovation in the theory and practice of world modernization， and brings valuable inspirations to the modernization process of all countries across the world.

Third， China serves to assist in the modernization drive of the Global South and promotes world modernization process with Chinese modernization. China is not pursuing modernization for its own sake， but hopes to achieve modernization together with all countries， including many other developing countries. China has put forward a series of Chinese solutions such as eight measures to support the Global South cooperation， ten partnership actions for China and Africa to jointly promote modernization， and practical measures to support the high-quality development of BRICS cooperation. All of these demonstrate that China will always keep the Global South in its heart and maintain its roots in the Global South， showcasing China’s firm determination to promote the development and rejuvenation of the Global South and injecting more powerful impetus into the modernization drive of the Global South.

Based on the practice of advancing Chinese modernization， China is actively exploring new paths of world modernization in deeper and broader dimensions. In October 2023， President Xi Jinping solemnly proposed at the opening ceremony of the Third Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation that world modernization should be the modernization of peaceful development， mutually beneficial cooperation and common prosperity. In September 2024， at the Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation， President Xi Jinping systematically proposed to promote modernization that is just and equitable， open and win-win， people-centered， diverse and inclusive， eco-friendly， and underpinned by peace and security， clarifying the goals and direction of China and Africa joining hands to promote modernization and depicting a common vision of building a better world. The six modernization goals are highly consistent with the high expectations of the Global South to achieve modernization under the new historical conditions. They reflect a profound understanding of the essence and laws of modernization and encapsulate the experience of Chinese modernization. They transcend the limitations of Western modernization theories， and fill the gaps in the theoretical framework of human modernization. This holds important guiding significance for countries around the world， especially the Global South， in their shared journey towards modernization.

——————————————

Wu Xiaodan is Researcher at the Xi Jinping Thought on Diplomacy Studies Center