Understand and grasp the profound connotation and characteristics of the new formulation

“Promoting the construction of the super-large-scale domestic market has become a sustainable historical process” was proposed by General Secretary Xi Jinping at the opening ceremony of a special seminar for leading official at provincial and ministerial levels to study and implement the spirit of the Fifth Plenary Session of the 19th CPC Central Committee at the beginning of this year. The new formulation is a major proposition put forward from a historical, overall and strategic perspective, facing the future and the world and bearing in mind China’s development reality and the needs of its future development strategy.

At first, it is long-term. Building a super-large-scale domestic market is not a short-term expedient to solve the weak domestic market demand, but a strategic deployment that focuses on the long-term strategic needs of China’s economic and social development, the long-term strategic layout of building a modern country, the long-term and systematic problems that restrict the growth of aggregate demand, and the long-term strategic arrangement to build a complete domestic demand system.

Secondly, it is sustainable. The super-large-scale domestic market we want to build is internationally competitive, has long-term vitality, vigor and power, and has the ability to get sustainable development. A big country with a strong foundation, strong resilience, broad scope and wide coverage is an ocean, not a small pond, not an unsustainable market that cannot withstand waves and large fluctuations.

Thirdly, it is historical. Building a super-large-scale domestic market is an inevitable historical process of a big country’s economy moving towards a strong country’s economy and a historical task that must be completed in the comprehensive construction of a modern socialist country. There is no limit to China’s modernization, even if China’s second centenary goal is achieved, a strong domestic market is still needed to maintain the historical status of a modern power. Therefore, building a super-large-scale domestic market is a long-term historical process.

Fourthly, it is strategic. In recent years, world economic growth has been sluggish, unilateralism, protectionism and anti-globalization have been on the rise, and the “Troika” driving China’s sustainable economic development has faced unprecedented challenges. From the overall and strategic perspective, in order to achieve the effect of “a slight move in one part may affect the situation as a whole”, it can be said that building the super-large-scale domestic market is the “first move”, which is not only the strategic basis point of China’s economic development, but also the towing point and breakthrough point of the development.

Understand and grasp the historical and realistic significance of the new formulation as well as the focus of the scale of the domestic market

Building a super-large-scale domestic market is a long-term strategic task, with far-reaching historical significance and great practical significance, we can understand and grasp it from four aspects.

Building a super-large-scale domestic market is a long-term and sustainable historical process to meet the needs of the people for a better life. The principal contradiction facing Chinese society has evolved into one “between unbalanced and inadequate development and the people’s ever-growing needs for a better life.” On the one hand, people’s needs for a better life are multifaceted, multi-tiered and constantly changing. When old needs are met, new needs will emerge, it is a long-term historical process. On the other hand, achieving more balanced and adequate development is also a long-term historical process. As old problems of unbalanced and inadequate development are solved, new ones will arise. People’s yearning for a better life is our goal, which is not only a long-term historical task in the primary stage of socialism, but also the fundamental driving force for building a super-large-scale domestic market. Therefore, it determines that building a super-large-scale domestic market is a long-term and sustainable historical process.

Building a super-large-scale domestic market is a sustainable long-term historical process of building an economic powerhouse. From the economic development history of modern countries in the world, the UK, the United States, Germany, Japan and other major countries have all experienced a process of economic development from “promoting inward from outside” to “promoting outward from inward”. As we embark on a new journey to comprehensively build a modern socialist country, it is consistent with the historical law of economic development for a major country to emphasize on expanding domestic demand, constructing a super-large-scale domestic market, and building a development model driven by domestic demand and innovation. This is not only an important task in building a modern country, but also will provide a strong driving force for the sustainable development in building a modern country.

Building a super-large-scale domestic market is a sustainable long-term historical process to achieve high-quality development. Promoting high-quality development in the new stage requires expanding domestic demand as the strategic basis, which embodies the new development concept. Building the super-large-scale domestic market is the key to transform the economic development pattern and realize high-quality endogenous development. Only the sustainability of the super-large-scale domestic market can ensure the sustainability of high-quality development, which is not only a long-term historical task, but also a sustainable historical process.

Building a super-large-scale domestic market is a long-term and sustainable historical process that seeks a holistic approach to both the domestic and international situations. In recent years, as the external environment and the factor endowment of China’s development have changed, the momentum of the international circulation outside the market and resources has obviously appeared to wane, and the development space is limited. From a long-term, overall and strategic perspective, in order to enhance the awareness of opportunities and risks, and actively extend and shape the period of strategic opportunities for China’s development, we must take into account both the domestic and international situations. Having our feet firmly planted at home and opening our eyes to the whole world, building a super-large-scale domestic market is a key move to open up a new bureau in the midst of great changes. This is not only a strategic choice and historical task of responding scientifically, actively seeking change, drawing on the advantages & avoiding disadvantages, and responding to challenges, but also a long-term and sustainable historical process.

Building the focus of the super-large scale domestic market

On the new journey, in order to build a super-large-scale domestic market, we must spend more time and energy on its “sustainable” and “long-term” development and find the focus of development.

At first, we should implement the new development philosophy and make concerted efforts to build a super-large-scale domestic market. Making the construction of a super-large-scale domestic market become a sustainable historical process, we must earnestly implement the new development concept and promote it in a coordinated manner. 1) The innovation is the first driving force for building a super-large-scale domestic market. The business model innovation, and continuous service innovation can enrich market products, improve market service level and optimize the business environment only through continuous scientific and technological innovation. 2) It is to build a super-large-scale domestic market with the concept of coordinated development. We should pay attention to the coordinated development of domestic and international markets, urban and rural markets, and online and offline markets. We should coordinate the relationship among production, distribution, circulation and consumption, the relationship between the central and local governments, and the interests of different market entities in different regions and fields. 3) It is to build a super-large-scale domestic market with the concept of green development. We need to promote green consumption and low-carbon living, which is an inevitable requirement for economic & social development and sustainable market development. Fourthly, we shall build a super-large-scale domestic market with the concept of open development and realize that the domestic market is interconnected and unimpeded with the international market. Fifthly, we will build a super-large-scale domestic market with the concept of shared development and fully mobilize the enthusiasm and creativity of the broad masses of the people.

Secondly, we need to speed up the construction of a new development pattern to provide sustainable strong support for building a super-large-scale domestic market. After more than 40 years of reform and opening-up, China’s economy has grown rapidly and it has become the world’s largest and most promising market with a population of over 1.4 billion and a middle-income group of over 400 million. As China steps into the ranks of high-income countries, its huge domestic market will continue to expand. The market is the scarcest resource in the world. To speed up building a new development pattern and expand domestic demand, we need to give full play to the advantages of China’s super-large-scale market, unleash huge and lasting market momentum, and promote China’s sustained, steady and sound economic growth. At the same time, building a super-large-scale domestic market needs strong sustainable support from the new development pattern. It is necessary to make full use of the vast and deep advantages of a big country’s economy, give full play to the effect of scale and agglomeration, better attract global commodities and resource factors, and create a sustainable development pattern for building a super-large-scale domestic market.

Thirdly, it is to accelerate the transformation of economic development pattern and provide sustainable growth impetus for building a super-large-scale domestic market. In pursuing development, we should take expanding domestic demand as the strategic basis and build a super-large-scale domestic market. This is not a simple repetition of the past. Rather, we should continue to transform the development pattern, adjust the economic structure, rely on scientific and technological innovation to foster new economic growth drivers, create more new poles of growth, and improve the quality and efficiency of economic development. As China enters a new stage of development, in order to achieve high-quality development and transform its economy from one driven by factor investment to one driven by innovation, we must continue to expand domestic demand, accelerate the cultivation of new consumption, and give greater play to the basic role of consumption and the key role of investment so as to make the construction of a super-large-scale domestic market become a sustainable historical process. At the same time, in order to accelerate the transformation of economic development pattern, make development more resilient and give more room for maneuver, we need to continue to expand domestic demand, unblock the great domestic cycle, effectively respond to risks, hedge against external pressure, and boost business confidence and improve consumers’ confidence so as to realize more efficient, fairer, more sustainable and more secure development with higher quality, and provide sustainable growth impetus for building a super-large-scale domestic market.

Fourthly, we need to make systematic arrangements and deepen the reform so as to provide a sustainable and institutional guarantee for building a super-large-scale domestic market. In order to expand domestic demand and build a super-large-scale domestic market, we need to deepen the reform so as to unblock circulation and remove bottlenecks. It mainly involves a series of contents such as supply-side reform and demand-side management, and the improvement of the socialist market economic system, etc. We should adhere to systematic thinking. In view of the structural problems restricting the release of the potential domestic demand, the systematic strategic deployment should be conducted, the formation of a long-term mechanism to expand domestic demand should be promoted at the institutional construction level, the institutional, ideological and interest fetters that hinder the smooth flow of the domestic big cycle and the domestic & international dual cycle unimpeded should be eliminated, the institutional barriers that impede the market-based allocation mechanism of production factors and the circulation of goods & services should be broken, so as to accelerate the formation of a unified domestic market that is efficient, standardized, fair, and fully open, foster a high-standard market-oriented, law-based, and internationalized business environment, reduce transaction cost across society, and build a high-level socialist market economy. Through reform and innovation, by effectively stimulating and guiding consumption, savings, and investment, getting through the blockages and obstructions that stifle demand, and unleashing the growth potential of productive and living demands, the supply structure can be constantly optimized and the effectiveness of demand accomplishment can be improved. Creating new demands and forming a sustainable driving force to unleash the potential of domestic demand will achieve a higher level of dynamic balance between supply and demand, and provide a sustainable institutional guarantee for building a super-large-scale domestic market.

Fifthly, we need to raise the level and quality of opening-up and a circular & sustainable international economic system should be created for building a super-large-scale domestic market. The super-large-scale domestic market is neither a closed, self-sufficient domestic circulating market, nor a small circulating market in various regions, but a domestic market closely connected with the international market. Therefore, in order to make the construction of a super-large-scale domestic market become a sustainable & historical process, it should take both domestic and international situations into consideration, make good use of both domestic & international markets and resources, continue to raise the level and quality of opening-up, and cultivate new advantages for China in international economic cooperation and competition by relying on the domestic cycle to attract global commodities and resources. By strengthening opening-up and cooperation, it will make the Chinese market more closely connected with the world market and raise the efficiency and level of the domestic big cycle. On the whole, we should insist on carrying out the opening-up policy more widely in more areas and at a deeper level, which can make China become not only the world’s factory, but also the world’s market. Foreign demand can be satisfied with domestic market and domestic demand can be met with foreign market so as to form a smoothly connected domestic and international cycle. In order to build a super-large-scale domestic market, a circular & sustainable international economic system should be created.