{"id":172411,"date":"2025-09-25T23:28:36","date_gmt":"2025-09-25T23:28:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/teknomers.com\/en\/why-does-china-assert-that-it-is-still-a-developing-country\/"},"modified":"2025-09-25T23:28:36","modified_gmt":"2025-09-25T23:28:36","slug":"why-does-china-assert-that-it-is-still-a-developing-country","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/teknomers.com\/en\/why-does-china-assert-that-it-is-still-a-developing-country\/","title":{"rendered":"Why does China assert that it is still a developing country?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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\"Lucas<\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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Lucas de la CalShanghai correspondent<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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Updated <\/span>

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The Evolution of China’s Economy Post-WTO<\/h2>\n

After 15 years of \u00a0negotiations\u00a0, China officially joined the \u00a0World Trade Organization (WTO)\u00a0 on December 11, 2001. This pivotal move marked a significant milestone in the rapid ascent of the Asian giant, prompting it to implement a series of \u00a0reform measures\u00a0 aimed at opening its economy. Barriers to trade were wiped away, tariffs were significantly reduced, and, as a result, the country became a beacon for \u00a0foreign investment\u00a0.<\/p>\n

Almost overnight, a torrent of \u00a0capital and trade\u00a0 began to flow into China’s markets, initiating a transformation that propelled the nation to a \u00a0new economic paradigm\u00a0. This surge can be likened to a \u00a0bullet train\u00a0 that would refuse to slow down. In the wake of its WTO accession, China hastily climbed the ranks to become the \u00a0second-largest economy in the world\u00a0, while simultaneously emerging as the world’s top exporter and witnessing its GDP per capita multiply by more than tenfold.<\/p>\n

China’s Economic Progress: A Double-Edged Sword<\/h2>\n

China evolved from a \u00a0cheap manufacturing\u00a0 hub to a powerhouse boasting \u00a0advanced technological capabilities\u00a0 that dominate global value chains. The nation transitioned from a fragile banking system to holding the largest foreign exchange reserves in the world. However, this remarkable growth has come with complexities. Despite its growing economic prowess and \u00a0global influence\u00a0, China maintains its status within the WTO as a ”\u00a0developing country\u00a0,” a designation that many industrialized nations have contested.<\/p>\n

For years, the \u00a0United States\u00a0 and the \u00a0European Union\u00a0 have pressed for a reevaluation of this status, aiming to curtail the advantages it provides\u2014especially in terms of compliance timelines, flexibility on trade regulations, and preferential support in international trade disputes.<\/p>\n

The Poverty Divide: An Ongoing Challenge<\/h2>\n

China argues that it continues to face severe \u00a0development challenges\u00a0, highlighting the disparities between prosperous cities such as \u00a0Shanghai\u00a0, \u00a0Beijing\u00a0, and \u00a0Shenzhen\u00a0, and the vast, rural areas where many still endure deprivation. The Chinese government cites the large population\u2014exceeding \u00a01.4 billion\u00a0\u2014as a contributing factor to the relatively low GDP per capita (approximately \u20ac11,300 in nominal terms as of 2024), which is substantially less than developed nations.<\/p>\n

Despite its significant advancements that have uplifted hundreds of millions from \u00a0extreme poverty\u00a0, this \u00a0economic divide\u00a0 underscores ongoing struggles, bolstering the stance that the designation of “developing nation” remains relevant.<\/p>\n

A Shift in Trade Diplomacy<\/h2>\n

Recent developments have seen the Asian superpower relinquishing certain privileges within the WTO framework while reaffirming its commitment to retain its \u00a0developing nation\u00a0 status. This announcement was made by Chinese Prime Minister \u00a0Li Qiang\u00a0 during a recent address at the UN General Assembly.<\/p>\n

During his speech, Li emphasized China’s intention not to seek \u00a0special treatment\u00a0 in future WTO negotiations, reinforcing the idea that China aims to play a responsible role in the \u00a0global trade ecosystem\u00a0\u2014especially in light of rising \u00a0protectionism\u00a0 embodied in policies from the previous U.S. administration.<\/p>\n

Global Implications of China’s Trade Position<\/h2>\n

Following Li’s statement, a spokesman from China’s Ministry of Commerce elaborated that the nation will continue to be categorized as a ”\u00a0developing country\u00a0.” This classification allows China to continue navigating its trade obligations while reinforcing its political narrative as a leader from the Global South.<\/p>\n

With approximately \u00a0two-thirds\u00a0 of WTO members classified as developing nations, China bolsters its position as a significant player within this group, presenting itself as a spokesperson for emerging economies. The \u00a0BRICS\u00a0 coalition\u2014comprising \u00a0Brazil, Russia, India, China\u00a0, and \u00a0South Africa\u00a0\u2014is a testament to this. Together, these nations account for \u00a041%\u00a0 of the world\u2019s population, \u00a031.5%\u00a0 of global GDP, and \u00a016%\u00a0 of international trade.<\/p>\n

This strategic positioning showcases not only China’s trading influence but also its ability to craft an \u00a0alternative narrative\u00a0 to that proposed by Western powers.<\/p>\n


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General News – 2<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Lucas de la CalShanghai correspondent Updated Friday, September 26, 2025 – 00:00 The Evolution of China’s Economy Post-WTO After 15 years of \u00a0negotiations\u00a0, China officially joined the \u00a0World Trade Organization (WTO)\u00a0 on December 11, 2001. This pivotal move marked a significant milestone in the rapid ascent of the Asian giant, prompting it to implement a […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[23832],"tags":[19819,2397,18,67,1834],"class_list":["post-172411","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-finance","tag-assert","tag-china","tag-country","tag-developing","tag-economy"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/teknomers.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/172411","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/teknomers.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/teknomers.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/teknomers.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/teknomers.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=172411"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/teknomers.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/172411\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/teknomers.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=172411"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/teknomers.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=172411"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/teknomers.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=172411"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}