Yu Miaojie is a Deputy to the 14th National People’s Congress, a specially appointed supervisor of the National Commission of Supervision, a Fellow of the International Economic Association (IEA) of the United Nations, and currently President of Liaoning University. He also serves as Vice President of the Chinese Society of World Economy, Vice President of the Chinese Society of Quantitative Economics, and Vice President of the Chinese Society of Industrial Economics. He is the first Chinese recipient of the Royal Economic Society Prize, a Boya Distinguished Professor at Peking University. His main research areas include international trade, world economy, and China's economic development.
The Proposal of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China on Formulating the 15th Five-Year Plan for National Economic and Social Development reviewed and adopted at the Fourth Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, has charted the course and provided direction for China’s economic development over the next five years and beyond. What new opportunities will China’s economy encounter during the “15th Five-Year Plan” period? How can Liaoning leverage its own strengths to further strengthen the real economy? How can it capitalize on its advantages in science, education, and industry? Regarding these questions, Yu Miaojie, President of Liaoning University was specially interviewed.
Focusing Economic Development on the Real Economy
Reporter: The “15th Five-Year Plan” proposal lists “building a modern industrial system and consolidating and strengthening the foundation of the real economy” as the first strategic task. What signal does this send?
Yu Miaojie: Placing it at the top highlights the crucial role of the real economy in China’s development. The real economy is key for a country, especially a developing one, to overcome the “middle-income trap.” The so-called “middle-income trap” refers to a situation where, after a country or region’s per capita GDP exceeds $10,000, extensive growth models lead to economic stagnation. Only by improving total factor productivity and cultivating new quality productive forces can high-quality development be achieved. The cultivation of new quality productive forces relies precisely on the real economy, with manufacturing as its mainstay.
The “15th Five-Year Plan” proposal explicitly calls for accelerating the development of a strong manufacturing nation, a quality-focused nation, a leading aerospace nation, a robust transportation network, and a powerful cyber country. Among these, a strong manufacturing nation is the foundation, with the goal of improving product quality. Establishing standards is the key to enhance quality. In the future, China must become a standard-setter, establishing its national strength on standards, in order to become a quality-focused nation. In the specific implementation process, the “sky” (aerospace), the “ground” (transportation), and the “invisible” (cyber) network all serve the real economy. Efforts should focus on three key areas: first, optimizing and upgrading traditional industries. The “15th Five-Year Plan” proposal emphasizes “adhering to the directions of intelligentization, greening, and integration.” Integration provides a clear direction for digital development, enhancing the overall competitiveness of industries through the deep integration of digital technology and the real economy. Second, nurturing and expanding emerging industries. Accelerate the cluster development of strategic emerging industries such as new energy, new materials, aerospace, and the low-altitude economy. Third, promoting future-oriented industries. Focus on advancing six key areas: quantum technology, biomanufacturing, hydrogen and nuclear fusion energy, brain-computer interfaces, embodied intelligence, and sixth-generation mobile communication, aiming to seize the high ground for future development.
Reporter: The foundation of Liaoning’s comprehensive revitalization lies in the real economy. What measures should Liaoning take to consolidate and strengthen this foundation?
Yu Miaojie: Traditional industries are an essential part of Liaoning’s real economy. To consolidate and strengthen this foundation, the primary task is to optimize and upgrade traditional industries by applying new technologies, promoting their deep integration with traditional sectors, and accelerating the transformation and modernization of these industries. Traditional industries should not be simplistically labeled as “sunset industries”; there are only “sunset technologies,” not “sunset industries.” For example, the steel industry, empowered by intelligentization, greening, and integration, can fully transform into a sunrise industry.
Transforming Educational, Scientific, and Industrial Advantages into Advantages for Innovative Development
Reporter: The “15th Five-Year Plan” proposal calls for “accelerating high-level self-reliance and strength in science and technology to lead the development of new quality productive forces.” What is the internal logic between the two?
Yu Miaojie: New quality productive forces encompass two core meanings: first, revolutionary breakthroughs in technology and innovative allocation of production factors; second, driving the deep transformation and upgrading of industries. The key to revolutionary technological breakthroughs lies in achieving high-level self-reliance and strength in science and technology, thereby enhancing total factor productivity. The ultimate goal of new quality productive forces is the improvement of total factor productivity and differentiated development based on local conditions.
Technological innovation can be divided into two stages: first, original innovation from 0 to 1, which is the blueprint design phase; second, technological improvement from 1 to N, which involves moving from blueprint design to laboratory R&D, and then to industrial application. Judging from the current state of development, China is already at the forefront globally in “going from 1 to N”, demonstrating clear comparative advantages. However, in “going from 0 to 1”, there remains a certain gap compared to some developed countries. This necessitates continuously increasing investment in basic research and advancing the integrated development of education, science and technology, and talent.
Reporter: How can Liaoning transform its educational, scientific, and industrial advantages into developmental advantages?
Yu Miaojie: Liaoning boasts over 40 higher education institutions, with rich resources in science, education, and talent. Liaoning also has a relatively comprehensive industrial system. Within the national economic classification of 41 major industrial categories, 207 medium industrial categories, and 666 minor industrial categories, Liaoning possesses 40, 197, and 519 respectively, indicating significant comparative advantages. We should strengthen deep cooperation between universities and enterprises. By establishing regular supply-demand matching platforms, we can promote in-depth collaboration between universities and enterprises in talent cultivation, technological R&D, and commercialization of research results, achieving precise alignment between supply and demand, and transforming educational, scientific, and industrial advantages into advantages for innovative development.
Unlocking Market Potential and Stimulating Consumption Vitality
Reporter: The “15th Five-Year Plan” proposal calls for “building a strong domestic market and accelerating the formation of a new development pattern.” Consumption is the main engine driving economic growth. How can Liaoning fully unleash its market potential?
Yu Miaojie: Building a unified national market fundamentally involves balancing the relationship between consumption and investment. In the past period, China's domestic demand was primarily driven by investment. During the “15th Five-Year Plan” period, we must accelerate the cultivation of consumption as a driver of the economy. Consumption and investment are mutually reinforcing. Consumption is the fundamental purpose and driving force of social production, while investment is the tool and means to meet consumption needs. In other words, demand drives supply, and supply in turn creates demand.
For Liaoning, vigorously boosting consumption and unleashing market potential requires adopting the concept of “developing Liaoning by looking beyond Liaoning.” The target consumers should cover the whole country, even East Asia and the world. To achieve this, on one hand, we must strengthen promotion efforts and create a batch of new consumption scenarios with broad impact and high visibility, stimulating consumption through initiatives like first-launch economy, ice-and-snow economy, and red tourism economy. On the other hand, we must continuously optimize the business environment, uphold integrity as the foundation, and constantly enhance market attractiveness, so that more tourists and investors from other regions are willing to vacation, travel, and invest in Liaoning.
Enabling More Workers to Join the Middle-Income Ranks
Reporter: The “15th Five-Year Plan” proposal calls for the “continuous expansion of the middle-income group.” What impact will this have on the lives of ordinary people in Liaoning?
Yu Miaojie: The continuous expansion of the middle-income group will not only improve people’s quality of life but also further enhance Liaoning’s attractiveness, achieve net population inflow, and inject lasting momentum into Liaoning’s sustained economic improvement.
Continuously expanding the size of the middle-income group requires addressing two issues: first, increasing the average social wage; second, narrowing income disparities, such as those between urban and rural areas or between “blue-collar” and “white-collar” workers. Wage levels are determined by the supply and demand relationship of labor. From the supply side, improvements in education quality increase the supply of high-quality labor. From the demand side, technological progress increases the demand for high-quality labor. To expand the middle-income group, the demand for high-quality labor must exceed its supply. This requires accelerating the cultivation of new quality productive forces, promoting industrial upgrading and structural optimization, creating more high-quality jobs, and enabling more low-income individuals to join the middle-income ranks.
