BEIJING, CHINA – FEBRUARY 6: Chinese President Xi Jinping (C) speaks during a bilateral meeting with Brunei Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah (not pictured) at the Great Hall of the People on February 6, 2025 in Beijing, China.
Andres Martinez Casares | Getty Images News | Getty Images
Chinese President Xi Jinping delivered a speech at a symposium with prominent entrepreneurs on Monday, according to state media Xinhua, signaling a shift toward renewed support for the private sector.
The meeting sends a “very clear signal of top-level support” to the private sector entrepreneurs, Peiqian Liu, Asia economist at Fidelity International told CNBC, “this will likely reignite the animal spirit and optimism about renewed growth momentum in China.”
“It could potentially be even more powerful than fiscal stimulus, should policymakers show more decisive support towards the development of tech sector in China,” Liu added.
Beijing has been grappling with lackluster domestic consumption, a prolonged real estate slump and external headwinds such as tariffs on its exports.
The meeting could mark “a symbolic turning point for Chinese tech sector after years of heightened scrutiny,” said Lynn Song, chief economist at LNG, emphasizing the timing of this meeting underscored Beijing’s urgency to cheer up the private sector amid economic malaise and external tariff risks.
It could mean that “the regulatory overhang that we have had for the past two years or so is at an end,” said Andy Maynard, managing director and head of equities at China Renaissance.
Reuters reported last week that Alibaba’s founder Jack Ma could be among the entrepreneurs invited to the meeting. Ma’s potential return to the limelight could reinforce the expectation that Beijing is softening its approach on large tech companies, Maynard said.
Beijing initiated a regulatory storm against the country’s large technology companies in late 2020 out of concerns that they were growing too large and powerful.
Mainland China’s CSI 300 index was little changed following the news.