The following speech, given by Chinese President Xi Jinping in April 2020 but not publicized until November, lays out perhaps the clearest picture thus far of Xi’s proposed “dual circulation” economic strategy. On the one hand, Xi advocates stimulating Chinese consumer spending and accelerating import substitution to reduce the Chinese economy’s dependence on foreign trade. On the other hand, Xi urges strengthening other countries’ dependence on Chinese technology, to dissuade them from engaging in trade wars with China. This does not prevent Xi from criticizing other countries for “politicizing” or “weaponizing” supply chains in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Chinese source text is available online at:
https://web.archive.org/web/20201111020608/http://www.qstheory.cn/dukan/qs/2020-10/31/c_1126680390.htm

US $1 ≈ 7 Chinese Yuan Renminbi (RMB), as of November 10, 2020.

Since the start of the COVID-19 outbreak, I have presided over many meanings and given a lot of instructions to promote the proper handling of epidemic control and economic and social development work. At the same time, I have also factored epidemic prevention and control into my reflections on the major issues involving the nation’s medium- and long-term economic and social development.

The world today is going through once-in-a-century changes, and this pandemic is also something encountered once in a century. It is both a crisis and a major test. At present, China’s epidemic prevention and control situation has already turned the corner, but the global pandemic is still growing, and the external situation is very grave. We must do well at externally preventing it from entering and internally preventing it from rebounding, never allowing it to make a comeback. At the same time, we must apply what we know, do longer-term thinking, refine our strategic layout, turn dangers into opportunities, and achieve high-quality development. In the following, I will focus on several issues from a development strategy perspective.