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Ukraine war
EconomyGlobal Economy

Ukraine invasion won’t dent China’s push to surpass US, become top economy by 2030: Beijing adviser Justin Lin Yifu

  • Former World Bank vice-president Justin Lin Yifu reiterated his estimate this week that China will become the world’s top economy by 2030
  • Overseas investors did sell 67 billion yuan (US$10.6 billion) worth of Chinese bonds last month, taking their holdings to 3.67 trillion yuan (US$580 billion)

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Justin Lin Yifu is a former World Bank vice-president who is now a professor at Peking University. Photo: Simon Song
Frank Tang

The ongoing war in Ukraine will not halt China’s push to surpass the United States to become the world’s largest economy by 2030, according to a senior Beijing adviser, despite a recent sell off of Chinese bonds by overseas investors.

Russia’s invasion comes at a time of downward economic pressure and rising tensions with Western powers for China, as well as global uncertainty caused by the war in Ukraine and the ongoing disruptions caused by the coronavirus.

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The Russia-Ukraine war will have an impact on China, but it will also affect the US. All countries will see a slower pace of growth
Justin Lin Yifu
“I’m pretty confident in my estimate that China will surpass the US by 2030,” said Justin Lin Yifu, a former World Bank vice-president who is now a professor at Peking University.

“The Russia-Ukraine war will have an impact on China, but it will also affect the US. All countries will see a slower pace of growth.”

Washington and its allies have strengthened sanctions on Russia, including the exclusion of Russian banks from the Swift financial messaging system, while they are also considering cutting off Russian energy imports.

Brent crude oil prices rose to a 13-year high of US$139 per barrel on Monday, and with it, created huge uncertainties for the global economy.

Lin, a former Taiwanese military officer who defected to the mainland in 1979, also believes China’s inflation will not rise quickly despite the increasing cost of oil and food.

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On Saturday, Premier Li Keqiang set a target for China’s consumer price index (CPI) growth for the year at “around 3 per cent” while delivering the government work report for 2022. China is set to announce February’s CPI figure on Wednesday, with expectations that it will remain unchanged at 0.9 per cent growth compared to the same period last year.
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