Beijing charting next phase of business enhancement

Capital's priorities include structural reforms, digital economy

With the income of Beijing residents keeping pace with its strong economy, the city has set its year-on-year GDP growth goal at around 5 percent for 2024, according to the municipal government's latest work report.

The annual report was delivered by Mayor Yin Yong at the opening of the second session of the 16th Beijing Municipal People's Congress on Jan 21. To achieve the goal, Yin said the city will make greater progress in the coordinated development of the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region; improve construction of the Integrated National Demonstration Zone for Opening Up the Services Sector and the China (Beijing) Pilot Free Trade Zone; advance reforms and opening-up from a higher starting point; focus on building itself into an international sci-tech innovation center; and expand and optimize the digital economy to better empower high-quality development.

The mayor said the municipal government's 2024 agenda also prioritizes promotion of the synergy between increased demand in the domestic market and enhanced supply-side structural reforms while advancing Beijing's construction as a national cultural center, strengthening urban governance and accelerating the integration of urban and rural areas. Efforts will be concentrated on ecological preservation, improvements in the quality of life, security and emergency response, and creating an innovative, service-oriented government.

In reviewing Beijing's 2023 achievements, Yin noted the city's substantial advancements in a wide range of sectors, including coordinated development of the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, technological innovation, cultural sites preservation, quality of life and green development.

"We have withstood various tests. The overall economy has shown positive signs of recovery, the overall social situation has remained stable, and new progress and achievements have been made in a number of undertakings," said the mayor.

Flipping through a copy of the government work report, Li Xueying, a congress deputy and chairperson of Topsec Technology Group, a Beijing-headquartered cybersafety, big data and cloud service provider, paid particular attention to content related to technological innovation and the digital economy.

"The data in the work report provides a vivid illustration of Beijing's achievements in high-quality development in 2023," Li said. "I am also pleased to see that the key tasks for 2024 include building Beijing into an international sci-tech innovation center and the improvement and expansion of the digital economy, which will undoubtedly further promote development of new driving forces."

Government data show added value of the digital economy accounted for 42.9 percent of Beijing's GDP in 2023, with its growth reaching 8.5 percent.

"Beijing has taken the lead in the digital economy nationwide, which is expected to provide a stronger engine driving this year's economic growth," said Song Tingting, a congress deputy and vice-president of Kuaishou Technology.

In noting that Beijing has strengths in further developing the digital economy, including advantages in technologies, human resources, policies and industries, as well as a huge user base, Song said continuous expansion of the digital economy scale and breakthroughs in technology are creating an increasing number of new business formats in the digital economy, including livestreaming e-commerce.

Meanwhile, for the first time, the government work report mentioned the new driving forces for productivity — a focus of attention for many deputies. Among them, Chang Rui, chairman of Foton Motor Group, said: "Accelerating advancement of new productive forces in Beijing will further contribute to achieving high-quality development."

Citing the hydrogen energy industry as an example, Rui said the initial generation of Beijing's hydrogen-powered buses had unsatisfactory cold resistance and issues with mileage endurance and stability of their fuel cell engines. However, through collaborative efforts from various sectors in Beijing, including industry, academia, research and application, hydrogen-powered buses have gradually overcome these challenges.

Zhao Minge, chairman of Shougang Group and a member of the Beijing Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, said: "The government work report is uplifting and has given me more faith in Beijing's economic development."

In 2023, the number of enterprises in Shougang Park exceeded 300 for the first time, of which tech companies accounted for more than 70 percent, and over 10 new businesses with annual revenues exceeding 10 million yuan ($1.4 million) were added. The park has become one of the 29 urban consumption centers in the capital, serving as an important business district and a dynamic destination in western Beijing.

Shougang Park attracted 12 million visits in 2023, including over 100,000 on a single day during the China International Fair for Trade in Services and the New Year's countdown, setting a new record for single-day attendance and demonstrating the ongoing vitality and appeal of the park in the post-Winter Olympics era.