Since the first World Economic Forum 54 years ago at Davos, Switzerland, few have been held during comparable geopolitical turmoil and uncertainty as the “Summer Davos” in Tianjin, northern China. The background of worldwide tariff wars, economic tensions involving leading powers and hot wars in the Middle East and Europe is without precedent. For example, policymakers and entrepreneurs have made it clear at the forum that uncertainties created by the United States’ tariffs blitz are not only disrupting global supply chains but also delaying investment decisions.

It is amid all these strains on stability that economic leaders from government and private sectors around the globe have come together in Tianjin for the forum’s second-largest annual gathering. They are looking to China, as the second-biggest and fastest-growing major economy, for a clear vision on the way forward.

Premier Li Qiang, keynote speaker at the Annual Meeting of the New Champions, the formal name of the event, did not disappoint. China is pinning its faith on the huge untapped potential of consumer spending to sustain its growth momentum. Li affirmed the country was striving to expand domestic demand and build a consumption-driven economy of a “massive scale” on the foundations of a manufacturing powerhouse.

Thanks to fragile consumer confidence, there is a long way to go, as shown by last month’s retail sales. They may have been up 6.4 per cent year on year, but that was after they were boosted by government subsidy and trade-in schemes. The latter lifted sales of cars, household appliances and other consumer items by more than 1.4 trillion yuan (HK$1.5 trillion) in 2024, a figure expected to be exceeded this year. Until a nation of savers can be persuaded to spend, Beijing may need to persist with incentives and subsidies.

Earlier, in separate meetings with foreign leaders, Li called on nations to defend free trade and multilateralism and uphold the stability of global supply chains. He reiterated China’s commitment to working with other countries to pursue modernisation through pragmatic and mutually beneficial cooperation. This would create “vast new market opportunities” for businesses around the world.

Addressing any doubts whether China could maintain growth in the face of so many volatile external challenges, Li said: “We have the confidence and capability to keep China’s economic growth at a relatively fast speed.”