On 23 January 2024, H.E. Ambassador Zheng Zeguang attended the Asia House Annual Outlook 2024 launch and delivered a keynote speech titled “China is always a Staunch Force for Peace and Development in the Asia-Pacific” at invitation.

On China’s economy, Ambassador Zheng pointed out that the year 2023 saw China continuing to be a key engine for the world economy. Despite various challenges, China’s GDP grew by 5.2% year-on-year, ranking among the fastest of the world's major economies. Internal drivers were stronger, and domestic demand contributed more than 110% to growth. Even with weak external demand, China’s total import and export of goods rose by 0.2%. In the first 11 months of last year, the number of newly established foreign-invested enterprises in China grew by over 36% year-on-year. The economy became more digitalised and greener. Investment in high-tech industries expanded by 10.3%, and foreign demand for “the new three,” namely, new energy vehicles, lithium-ion batteries and photovoltaic products grew rapidly, and their exports exceeded 1 trillion RMB yuan for the first time. China's contribution to global economic growth once again exceeded 30%.

Ambassador Zheng emphasised that all these conveyed a clear message to the world: betting against China has never succeeded in the past, and will not succeed in the future.