Premier says nation’s technology less competitive on global market

Premier Li Keqiang called for promoting the quality of Chinese products to help set off the side effects of decelerating economic growth.

He made the remark at the China Quality Conference on Sept 15, the first meeting of its kind held in China.

His call followed a National Bureau of Statistics report over the weekend that value-added industrial output — a major indicator of the condition of China’s economy — expanded by 6.9 percent year-on-year in August, the slowest pace in six years. The slowdown has prompted concerns that the world’s second-largest economy is losing steam.

At the conference on Sept 15, Li said that the miracle of the Chinese economy has to rely more on the improvement of quality, instead of speed, as the country is losing its traditional advantages to support economic growth.

“Our economic structure is far from balanced, and our innovation and high technology are often less competitive on the global market. So we have to put quality management in a more important position as we strive toward economic upgrading,” Li said.

“In other words, if quality cannot be ensured, our economy will lose the support of further growth.”

Li emphasized the essential role of companies in quality management and the need for less government intervention to give companies the freedom to decide what to produce. He also stressed the importance of developing a pool of educated laborers and a compulsory recall system.