<It's >

friendly economic time for anchors. Today (8th) we will be with reporter Kwon Ae-ri. Fine dust is really bad these days. But is there something hidden in the fine dust that can tell you the direction of the global economy?

<Reporter>

Yes. Stuffy atmosphere Hidden here is why the direction of the global economy is not simple, which we must know.

Nowadays, the most important event of the year is held in China for the Chinese Communist Party. The two sessions started on Saturday the 4th and will end on the 13th.

China's premier political events, the National People's Congress and the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, are held side by side and are called the two sessions, which are held at this time of year.

China has a very different political system than our democratic country.

But if we talk about the system we're used to, the Chinese version of the regular National Assembly, the president's third inauguration and cabinet reshuffle, his New Year's speech, the government's work report, all of these things happen this week.

So, as you probably don't remember, there were times at this time of year when I felt relatively easy to breathe for a few days.

Because the two congresses are events that the world is paying attention to, China has been shutting down factories altogether during this period for several years, and creating a clean atmosphere even by spraying artificial rain.

To avoid international criticism for not paying too much attention to air pollution, Beijing was shown with blue skies only during this important period, as it did during the Beijing Olympics.

However, in this two sessions, the so-called "two times blue", the blue Chinese sky of the two sessions, disappeared.

Even though the two sessions have begun, smog is huge in downtown Beijing and is washing up on the Korean Peninsula.

<Anchor>

I really think so. But why this year?

<Reporter>
It's not that
these two meetings aren't important.

On the contrary, it is more important than ever for the Chinese leadership now because it confirms President Xi Jinping's third consecutive term and begins a reopening to stretch China's economy that has been dormant for a long time.

This year, however, they are not forcing blue skies.

The first reason I see is that the reopening has now begun, so the factories are turning around furiously.

In fact, in the last three years, the term "corona blue" has appeared instead of "both times blue".

Even if it wasn't during the two sessions, every time the corona lockdown intensified, the factory couldn't be turned around much, so the blue sky was clearly visible.

But now, because they haven't been able to keep up with the economy, they're frantically spinning factories to get back on track.

That's certainly a big reason, but if China cares about its external image, the outside world as it did before COVID, it's such an important period for China, and this week can be a little restrained and create blue skies.

It's symbolic.

Now the noticing is over. China will go China's way.

In any case, in a political and economic environment divided by the US-China conflict, we will not do our job because of the Western gaze.

In other words, the so-called "carbon neutrality" promised to the international community is not more important than China's restart.

<Anchor>

I don't know if that's the case, but in this two sessions, measures and statements that were conscious of the US-China conflict kept coming out.

<Reporter>

Yes. It keeps coming out. The two sessions are also the occasion to announce China's economic growth targets and economic policy direction for the year.

China has increased its share of defense spending in both sessions, and it has also significantly increased its science and technology budget.

What China is most worried about right now is whether the U.S. "technology blockade" of China will work.

We will no longer allow China to cross its hegemony in the direction of high-tech, especially those involving semiconductors, space, and security. That's all China has to offer. This is at the heart of the U.S. containment policy against China these days.

China has countered this by increasing its science and technology budget.

President Xi Jinping himself emphasized "technological independence" at both sessions.

Semiconductor EV Entrepreneurs in the aerospace industry are also appearing at both sessions.

Even if they are excluded from the U.S.-led semiconductor supply chain, they will find a way to live.

On the other hand, someone like Alibaba founder Marwin who until a few years ago was one of the key entrepreneurs in both sessions, was a symbol of China's reform and opening up. These figures are gone.

Even in the midst of the two sessions, the fumes of the factories that are running fiercely are added to the fine dust from China these days, and this is exactly what the atmosphere is reflected in.