Scientific understanding of the economic situation is the fundamental prerequisite for doing economic work well. This requires us to adhere to the basic positions, viewpoints, and methods of Marxism, to see through phenomena to the essence, and through short-term fluctuations to the long-term, to grasp economic laws, and to recognize the inevitable trends in economic development determined by objective economic laws; we must also accurately grasp the general trend of development with a comprehensive, dialectical, and long-term perspective, not being confined to temporary fluctuations or trapped by temporary gains or losses, and always maintaining a firm strategic resolve.

On the date, the 130th Canton Fair themed "Serving High-Quality Development, Promoting High-Level Opening-Up" officially commenced. The image shows a buyer negotiating at the Jiangsu Suzhou booth in the "National Base for the Transformation and Upgrading of Foreign Trade" area during the 130th Canton Fair on the date. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Liu Dawei.

On the date, the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China held a meeting to analyze and study the current economic situation and economic work, stating that "it is necessary to comprehensively, objectively, and calmly assess the current economic situation, face difficulties squarely, strengthen confidence, and enhance the sense of responsibility and urgency in doing economic work." By comprehensively, objectively, and calmly assessing the current economic situation, we can conclude that the fundamental aspects of China's economy, such as its broad market, strong economic resilience, and great potential, have not changed.

From the perspective of supply capacity, after years of development and accumulation since the reform and opening up, China has built the most comprehensive industrial system and a convenient network of software and hardware infrastructure in the world. The advantages of having a wide range of industrial categories, a diverse range of products, and high-quality production continue to emerge. The scale of China's manufacturing industry has been the largest in the world for consecutive years, and in the first three quarters, the contribution of manufacturing to economic growth reached .%, an increase of . percentage points year-on-year.

From the perspective of market space, China has over a billion people with an average per capita income exceeding $10,000, and the potential demand for residents' food, clothing, housing, transportation, and spiritual and cultural needs is enormous. There is still significant room for investment in weak areas, vulnerable sectors, and new fields and tracks. The development vitality in areas such as new consumption and new infrastructure is also continuously being unleashed. In the first three quarters of 2023, fixed asset investment (excluding farmers) and total retail sales of consumer goods reached 44.9 trillion yuan and 34.5 trillion yuan, respectively. With the deepening construction of a unified national market, the potential demand and development space will continue to expand.

From the perspective of human resources, China's working-age population reaches approximately 800 million, with abundant labor resources and continuously improving quality. The average years of education for new entrants to the workforce exceed 13 years, and the number of people receiving higher education reaches 240 million. China also leads the world in the number of R&D personnel, providing talent support and intellectual assurance for high-quality development. Currently, China has emerged with 110,000 specialized and sophisticated "little giants" enterprises, and the number of invention patents granted from January to October increased by more than 10%.

It is essential to take a long-term view of the situation. President Xi Jinping delivered an important speech at the opening ceremony of the special seminar for leading cadres at the provincial and ministerial levels to study and implement the spirit of the Third Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the Party. He emphasized the need to deeply study and implement the spirit of the Third Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee, to unite and concentrate efforts to steadily advance reforms. Currently, the fundamental aspects of China's economy, including its vast market, strong economic resilience, and significant potential, remain unchanged. All regions and departments must earnestly implement a series of major measures determined by the Political Bureau of the Central Committee, effectively carry out existing and new policies, coordinate efforts comprehensively, and diligently manage the work in the remaining two months to strive to achieve the annual economic and social development goals and tasks.