Structural reforms are needed in many areas to raise economic potential. To enhance productivity, greater competition is needed, both at home and from abroad. Productivity improvements are vital, as the working-age population is declining. In China, GDP growth has been very rapid for the past three decades. It is now decelerating towards six per cent. This was to be expected after such vigorous growth.
In China, too, the working-age population is declining. Despite this deceleration in growth, the Chinese experience shows that it is possible to lift literally hundreds of millions of people from poverty through market-oriented reforms. But, in China, too, a lot can still be done to further raise productivity.