China hits back at economic war of words as ‘some people with ulterior motives’ fabricate threats

Ministry of State Security hit out at ‘some people with ulterior motives’ who are fabricating a China threat to disrupt market expectations and economic growth
Earlier this week, Beijing’s top leadership pledged to maintain economic stability, guide public opinion and play up China’s ‘bright prospects’ in 2024

China's economic recovery

Frank Chenin Shanghai

Published: 11:00pm, 15 Dec 2023

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China’s national security apparatus vowed on Friday to fight back against a narrative war over its economic condition, elevating the issue about how to describe the status quo and outlook of the Chinese economy to the level of economic security.

The statement from the Ministry of State Security came three days after the tone-setting central economic work conference, during which President Xi Jinping pledged to maintain economic stability, guide public opinion and play up China’s “bright prospects” in 2024.

The economic domain has become a “battlefield” of superpower rivalry, and dealing with various clichés denigrating China’s economy has become an external challenge, the ministry said on its WeChat account.

There are some people with ulterior motives. They are fabricating a China threat again

Ministry of State Security

“Talk concerning China’s decline is in essence an intention to create a ‘narrative trap’ or a ‘cognitive distortion’,” it said.

“It aims to doubt or deny China’s socialist system and attempts to strategically contain China’s development.

“There are some people with ulterior motives. They are fabricating a China threat again … with the intention to disrupt market expectations and economic growth momentum.”

In the statement that followed the two-day central economic work conference, which concluded on Tuesday, Beijing’s top leadership claimed China had “withstood the external pressure and overcome domestic difficulties” this year, with the world’s second-largest economy set to hit its 2023 growth target of “around 5 per cent”.

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It also placed a focus on economic construction and listed development as China’s “biggest political priority”.

The growth rate would be higher than most developed nations, including the United States and European countries.

But analysts point to the crisis involving Evergrande, Country Garden and other property developers, the debt mountain facing local government financing vehicles, high youth unemployment, a demographic crisis and faltering investor confidence, as potential problems for future growth.

“The national security ministry must echo the top leadership’s mandate and we know the backdrop of intensifying rivalry with America,” said a Shanghai-based scholar, who asked not to be identified due to the sensitivity of the issue.

“We still wonder if normal discussions about the problems of the economy will inadvertently cross the vague red line, now that Beijing clearly wants us to focus on the bright prospects.”

It is not the first time that the state security ministry has touched economic topics, having warned about the security of strategic minerals overseas at the end of November.

Earlier this month, it also defended Beijing’s high-profile investigation into foreign firms on national security grounds.

The moves against the likes of Capvision, Bain & Company and Mintz Group were seen to contrast with widespread efforts by Beijing to lure both foreign and private investors with a promise of equal treatment and wider market access.

On Friday, the Beijing-based semi-official China Chamber of International Commerce set up a work committee to help solve complaints and problems raised by foreign-funded firms.

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