The Two Sessions in China 2021 with Zhou Xin

Fresh out of the studio, in episode 341, Zhou Xin, political economy editor from South China Morning Post, joined us in a conversation to discuss the Two Sessions in China for the year 2021, and what it means for the rest of the world. Zhou Xin dived deep into the key agenda for the Two Sessions for 2021 and how the Chinese government will focus on in the next 5 years from technology development to boosting the small and medium businesses segment in China. We discuss the implications on how the Chinese economy impacts the rest of the world for the year ahead.

Here are the interesting show notes and links to the discussion:

Zhou Xin, Political Economy Editor, South China Morning Post (LinkedIn, SCMP Profile)
How did you start your career?
What’s your current role and coverage for SCMP?
What are the lessons you can share on your career journey with our audience?
Two Sessions in China and what it means for business & technology
Can you start by explaining what the two sessions in China are about and what is the significance of the session in context to the outside world?
How long are the Two Sessions and what was on the agenda for 2021?
Can you briefly discuss the key takeaways for the two sessions with respect to the economic 5 year plan and how it impacts businesses and technology development in China?
One of the big changes is that they revise their GDP growth rates to 6% instead of the 8-9%, what is the rationale behind this revision?
Where are the key areas China will focus on with respect to technology?
Is it in the realm of semiconductors, quantum computing or other areas of interest?
How are they planning to encourage innovations among enterprises and optimize their supply chains?
With regards to the businesses, the Chinese government will increase lending by big banks to small businesses by more than 30 per cent this year. What are the implications to the macroeconomic situation in China?
At the same time, the Chinese government will continue fintech clamp down with respect to what happened with Ant Financial. Where are they with their own anti-trust regulations? Do we foresee more coming with the fintech companies in China?
What are some of the other larger trends that business decision makers should be aware of? For example, aging population, green or new energy,
What are the implications of the policy proposals in Two Sessions 2021 to the rest of the world? What should other countries look out for?
Closing
Can you recommend anything interesting which has inspired your life recently?
Zhou Xin’s recommendation: 苏東坡新传 by 李一冰
Where can our audience find you?

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Podcast Information:

The show is hosted and produced by Carol Yin (@CarolYujiaYin) and originally created by Bernard Leong (@bernardleong, Linkedin). Sound credits for the intro music: Taro Iwashiro, “The Beginning” from Red Cliff Soundtrack.