(September 4, 2016)

Dear colleagues,

I declare the G20 Hangzhou Summit open!

I am pleased to meet you all here in Hangzhou. First of all, I want to extend a warm welcome to you!

Last year's G20 Antalya Summit was a great success, and I want to take this opportunity to thank Turkey, which was the president of last year's summit, again for its outstanding job and for achieving positive results. Turkey made“strong, sustainable and balanced growth through collective action” the theme of the summit, and promoted results with“inclusiveness, implementation and investment.” China has always positively commented on the various tasks carried out by Turkey during its presidency period.

Last November, when I introduced Hangzhou to you in Antalya, I quoted a Chinese saying which goes, “Up in Heaven there is Paradise, down on Earth there are Suzhou and Hangzhou.” I believe that the Hangzhou Summit will present you a unique mixture of history and reality. Today, this invitation has become a reality. Here we have both old and new friends, as we gather in Hangzhou to discuss major development plans for the world economy.

In the next two days, we will discuss topics including enhancement of macro-policy coordination, innovation in growth models, more efficient global economic and financial governance, robust international trade and investment, inclusive and interconnected development and other prominent issues that impact the world economy.

Eight years ago, at the most critical time of the international financial crisis, the G20, entrusted with a mission at a critical and difficult moment and in a partnership spirit of going through thick and thin together, pulled the world economy that was sliding toward a precipice back to a track of stability and recovery. That was an unprecedented move. Unity overcame differences. Mutual benefit replaced selfish gains. That crisis made people remember the G20, and led to the establishment of the G20 as the major forum for international economic cooperation.

Eight years later, the world economy has again arrived at a critical moment. Scientific and technological progress,population growth, economic globalization, and other main engines that pushed world economic growth over the past several decades have one after another entered a gear-change stage, and their impetus role for the world economy has visibly weakened. The growth impetus brought about by previous rounds of scientific and technological progress has gradually slackened, and a new round of scientific and technological and industrial revolution has yet to gain momentum. A graying society and low population growth rate in major economies one after another bring pressure on various countries' economies and societies. Economic globalization has suffered a setback. Protectionism and inward-looking tendencies raise their heads. The multilateral trade system is coming under assault. Although there has been marked progress in financial oversight reforms, risks, including high leverage and large bubbles, continue to accumulate. How to make financial markets effectively serve the real economy while maintaining stability still remains a major headache for various countries.

Under the composite effects of these factors, although the world economy still maintains a recovery posture as a whole, it still faces multi-layer risks and challenges, including a lack of growth impetus, sluggish demand, repeated turmoil in financial markets, and a sustained slump in international trade and investment.

Although the G20 is a forum for the world's major economies with pivotal influences and roles, it also puts itself at the forefront of risks and challenges, and of expanding growth space. The world community is full of expectations of the G20 and places great hopes on the current Summit. We need to squarely face up to problems and jointly seek answers through respective actions and collective forces. It is hoped that the G20 Hangzhou Summit will, based on its past foundation, write a prescription that can treat both the symptoms and root causes of the problems and is able to work out comprehensive measures for the world economy to tread a path of robust, sustainable, balanced and inclusive growth.

First, faced with the current challenges, we should enhance macro-economic policy coordination, join forces to promote global economic growth, and help maintain financial stability. G20 members should adopt even more comprehensive macro-economic policies by integrating with their own countries' reality, use various effective policy tools, make overall plans for working out fiscal, monetary and structural reform policies, strive to expand global overall demand, improve the quality of supply in an all-round manner, and solidify the foundation of economic growth. While formulating and implementing the Hangzhou Action Plan, we should continue to strengthen policy coordination, reduce negative spillover effects, jointly help maintain financial stability and raise market confidence.

Second, in the face of the current challenges, we should innovate in development models and tap growth impetus. The G20 should adjust its line of thought on policy, and place equal emphasis on short-term policies and medium- and long-term policies, as well as on demand-side management and supply-side reform. This year we have reached a consensus on the G20 Blueprint on Innovative Growth, and have unanimously decided to open up a new path and expand new frontiers for the world economy through innovation, structural reforms, new industrial revolution, digital economy, and others. We need to firmly continue in this direction, help the world economy completely extract itself from the situation of lackluster recovery and fragile growth, and lay a solid foundation for a new round of growth and prosperity for the world economy.

Third, in the face of the current challenges, we should improve the global economic governance and solidify its mechanism guarantee. The G20 needs to constantly improve the international monetary system, optimize the international financial institution governance structure, and give full play to the role of SDR of the International Monetary Fund. There is the need to improve the Global Financial Safety Net, enhance cooperation in financial oversight, international taxation, anti-corruption and in other areas of cooperation, and raise the capability of the world economy to resist risks. This year we have restarted the G20 international financial framework working group. We hope to continuously promote it, and raise its effectiveness.

Fourth, in the face of the current challenges, we need to build an open world economy, and continue to push trade and investment liberalization and facilitation. Protectionism is like drinking poison to quench one's thirst;from a short-term perspective protectionism looks like it can relieve internal pressure of a country, but from a long-term perspective it will inflict irreparable damage to the country itself and to the world economy as a whole. The G20 should avoid adopting beggar-thy-neighbor policies, be an advocate and promoter of an open world economy, abide by the commitment to eschew new protectionism measures, strengthen coordination and cooperation on investment policies, and adopt earnest actions to promote trade growth. We should give full play to the radiating effect and locomotive roles of infrastructure construction and connectivity, help developing countries and small and medium-sized companies to become involved in the global value chain, and push for further opening, exchanges and harmony of the global economy.

Fifth, in the face of the current challenges, we should implement the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, and promote inclusive development. Realizing common development is the hope of the people of various countries, particularly the developing countries. According to statistics, as the world's Gini coefficient has reached around 0.7 and surpassed the recognized “danger line” of 0.6, we should pay great attention to this. This year we have placed development in a prominent position on the G20 agenda, made a joint commitment for active implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, and formulated action plans. At the same time, we should reduce unequal and imbalanced global development, and enable people of all countries to enjoy the growth results of the world economy by means of supporting the industrialization efforts of Africa and LDCs, enhancing energy access, energy efficiency, the utilization of clean energy and recyclable energy, developing financial inclusion, and encouraging young people to start businesses.

Dear colleagues,

The G20 bears the expectations of various countries. It has important missions. We need to make an effort to build up the G20 and properly grasp the major direction for the prosperity and stability of the world economy.

First, advancing with the times and giving full play to its leading role, the G20 should adjust its own development direction in accordance with the needs of the world economy and further transform itself from a crisis-management body to a long-term and effective governance mechanism. In the face of major and salient problems, the G20 has the responsibility to play a leadership role, demonstrate strategic vision, show direction, and open up a development path for the world economy.

Second, knowledge and action should go hand in hand. We need to adopt pragmatic actions. It is better to enforce one thing instead of making thousands of commitments. We should make the G20 a force for action instead of engaging in empty talk. This year we have formulated action plans in the spheres of sustainable development, green finance, raising energy efficiency, anti-corruption, etc., and we should implement every action in a down-to-earth manner.

Third, joint building and sharing, and creating a platform for cooperation. We should continue to enhance the mechanism building of the G20, and ensure that cooperation will be extended and deepened. It is necessary to extensively accept good suggestions, and listen attentively to the voices of countries all round the world, particularly those of the developing countries, so that the work of the G20 can be even more inclusive and the G20 can better respond to the appeals of the people of all countries.

Fourth, let us go through thick and thin together, and give full play to the partnership spirit. The partnership spirit is the most precious wealth of the G20. Although our national conditions are different, we are at different development stages, and we face different realities and challenges, we share the same wish for promoting economic growth, the same interests in dealing with crises and challenges, and the same development vision to realize common development. As long as we adhere to the partnership spirit of going through thick and thin together, we will be able to overcome the rough waves of the world economy and embark on a brand-new voyage for future growth.

Dear colleagues,

In the course of preparing for the Hangzhou Summit, China has always upheld the concept of openness, transparency and inclusiveness for hosting the Summit, and maintained close communication and coordination with all the G20 members. We have also held various forms of dialogues on the sidelines. We have briefed the UN, African Union, Group of 77, LDCs, land-locked countries and small island nations, and given information on our preparations for the Hangzhou Summit to countries all over the world and people who care about the G20, and listened attentively to the interest appeals of all parties. Opinions and suggestions put forth by these parties have played an important role in the preparations for this Summit.

I expect that in the discussions in the next two days we can pool our wisdom, join forces, and strive to enable the Hangzhou Summit to realize the objectives of promoting world economic growth, of enhancing international economic cooperation, and of pushing G20 development.

Let us make Hangzhou a new starting point, lead the convoy of the world economy on a voyage from the Qiantang River here, and head into the wider ocean!

Thank you all.

注释：

[1]Opening speech at the G20 Hangzhou Summit.