Dong Tao, Vice Chairman Greater China for Private Banking Asia Pacific, Credit Suisse, pointed out in his speech in Taiwan that the US-China trade war has imposed a greater influence of reform rather than just an impact on China. Once the country completes its structural adjustment on economy and begins the commercialization of artificial intelligence, China will overtake and lead the global economy.
On the Economic Investment Outlook Forum held by Economic Daily on December 20th, Tao was invited to deliver a keynote speech on "Global and China's Economic Outlook under China-US Trade Disputes."
The truce of the trade war does not mean armistice, Tao said, as the world's second largest economy, China is calling the United States out. This is the competition between the first and second place. The United States seeks to derail the “Made in China 2025” plan, and Huawei is the first to bear the brunt because it is considered the leader in 5G technology in China. However, this trade war will inevitably force the Chinese economy to rely on the local market while its technology advances with local innovation.
China's economic structure has been forced to adjust. One obvious reform is the technological breakthrough, especially in patents and artificial intelligence, Tao emphasized. He pointed out that China's investment and progress in the field of 5G and AI have already taken a big step ahead of any other country in the world.
He also mentioned that the progress of China's AI technology is evident, seeing the annual number of engineering graduates in China has already exceeds that of the United States. The breakthrough in technology will be the main driving force for China's economic development in the next 20 years, especially when China has outperformed the United States in the industrialization of 5G and AI, posing a threat not only to the country but also the world.