Market Doubts Addressed by Authorities

On October 8, 2024, the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) held a significant press conference themed "Systematically Implementing a Package of Incremental Policies to Solidly Promote Economic Upward Structure Optimization and Continuously Positive Development Trends." This conference did not introduce new policies but provided a detailed interpretation of the recent central and State Council meeting spirits, focusing on addressing market doubts and confusions.

At the Central Economic Work Conference on September 26, the government clearly proposed a package of incremental policies to address the current economic challenges. The following State Council executive meeting focused on how to specifically implement these policies. Therefore, the press conference on October 8 became a guide and explanation for the decisions made in the previous two meetings, especially against the backdrop of the current complex and changing domestic and international economic situation, where the market's expectations and doubts about policies have become increasingly evident.

At the press conference, the leaders of the NDRC introduced a series of policy measures, focusing on five aspects: increasing counter-cyclical macro policy adjustments, expanding domestic effective demand, increasing assistance to enterprises, promoting the real estate market to stop falling and stabilize, and boosting the capital market. These policies aim to stabilize economic growth and optimize the economic structure through systematic measures.

Counter-cyclical Macro Policy Adjustments: The government will continue to increase investment efforts. It is expected that most of the nearly 6 trillion yuan in government investment to be implemented this year has been allocated to specific projects, forming physical work volume. For example, 58% of the 700 billion yuan in central budget investment projects have already started, showing positive progress in policy implementation.

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Expanding Effective Demand: While meeting investment needs, the government is also focusing on attracting private capital participation, having introduced 441 major projects with a total investment of 344.8 billion yuan. This not only helps to increase investment efforts but also provides more opportunities for the market.

Stabilizing the Real Estate Market: The press conference mentioned the need to promote the real estate market to stop falling and stabilize. Looking at specific data, the recovery of the real estate market's impact on the overall economy cannot be ignored. Fiscal policy adjustments and market confidence recovery will be key to driving development in this area.

Boosting the Capital Market: By promoting financing and investment and increasing the activity of the capital market, the government plans to introduce relevant measures to encourage long-term capital inflows and stabilize market expectations.

In response to market doubts about the intensity of policies, the press conference provided clear responses in several aspects. On the one hand, the government will advance the issuance of some "two heavy" construction projects and central budget investment plans for 2025 to ensure that investments can be implemented as soon as possible and form physical work volume. On the other hand, for the tax and fee support policies that are about to expire, the government will consider extending their implementation based on the evaluation to further enhance corporate confidence.

This press conference did not indicate that large-scale fiscal stimulus policies will be implemented but emphasized the combination of fiscal balance and effective investment. This pragmatic attitude reflects the government's caution and strategic adjustment in dealing with economic challenges, and it is expected that future fiscal expenditures will be achieved through optimizing the structure rather than simply increasing the scale.

The core of this NDRC press conference was to respond to market confusion about economic policies through specific data and policy details. With the continuous implementation of policies and the improvement of the market environment, it is expected that the economy will gradually move towards stability and recovery in the future. This systematic policy arrangement not only shows the government's determination but also provides a clear sense of direction for businesses and the market, promoting economic development towards higher quality.