Xi's high-quality development' for China can mean anything

President Xi Jinping rang in the new year by declaring China's progress in pursuing "high-quality development." What exactly that mysterious slogan means for supporting growth in 2024 is becoming a defining question for investors.

The Chinese leader uttered the vague phrase on at least 128 occasions in 2023, including in his Sunday address outlining the nation's goals for this year.

That was nearly double the mentions of 2022 and his most annual uses on record, according to a Bloomberg analysis of Xi's public speeches.

"At first blush, the concept seems pretty clear: Policymakers will allow slower GDP growth, as long as that growth is more sustainable than in the past," said Christopher Beddor, deputy China research director at Gavekal Dragonomics.

"But the more you try to pin it down, the more slippery it gets." The fuzzy slogan first entered Communist Party lexicon at a major congress in 2017.

The Chinese leader used the phrase to signal Beijing's intent to keep the economy expanding at a healthy pace as it transitioned away from a "high speed" growth model fuelled by a rapid buildup of debt.