(Video) Rajya Sabha TV (RSTV) The Big Picture: China Slowdown

Topic: China Slowdown

Guest:

Jayant Dasgupta, (Former Ambassador of India at WTO)
Ajay Shankar, (Former Secretary, DIPP)
Raviprasad Narayanan, (Associate Professor, Centre for East Asian Studies, JNU)
Ajay Dua, (Former Secretary, Ministry of Commerce & Industry)

Topic Description:

China's premier warned Tuesday that the country faces a "tough struggle" as he unveiled tax cuts and other measures to prop up an economy expected to slow further this year. Premier Li Keqiang told the opening session of China's annual National People's Congress that the government is targeting growth of 6.0 to 6.5 percent this year for the world's second-largest economy, lowering its range from 2018. The slowdown and trade war have become major challenges for President Xi Jinping, one year after the NPC boosted his status as the country's most powerful leader since Mao Zedong by abolishing term limits and etching his name into China's constitution. The government had set a target of around 6.5 per cent in 2018 and eventually recorded official growth of 6.6 percent -- the slowest pace in nearly three decades. Three-quarters of provinces have already lowered their annual growth targets this year.