'Dual circulation' to boost growth (V)

A1: We delivered a resilient performance, both operationally and financially. As of the end of the third quarter in 2020, SCB China has achieved both income and operating profit growth, and we remained the largest contributor to the network income of the group.

China is a strategically important and top priority market for Standard Chartered. We have a long-term commitment to China, and we're among international banks with most comprehensive licenses.

A2: With this new pattern, China will continue its opening-up as well as facilitating and enhancing trade and investment with other countries. The recently launched Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, which was joined by China and 14 nations, is a good case in point.

We're well-positioned to connect the domestic and international circulation and promote the dual circulation in a range of areas, including digitalization, supply chain financing, renminbi internationalization, the Belt and Road Initiative and the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.

A3: China's effective pandemic control has led to a quick V-shaped economic recovery in the second quarter of last year, paving the way for the sustained recovery in the second half on normalization of both industrial and services activities.

China prioritized employment last year and implemented effective policies to restore businesses, which helped the unemployment rate decline to 5.3 percent in October from 6.2 percent in February. The PBOC's quarterly depositor survey suggests that households' income and employment expectations improved in the third quarter.

China's quick recovery and normalization of activities last year has contributed greatly to the resumption of global trade and industrial chains, reflected in the surge of China's export growth in the second half. Thanks to the resilient supply chains and quickly resumed production capacity, China's dollar-denominated export growth jumped to over 20 percent year-on-year in November. We estimate that China's exports will contribute about 16 percent to total exports globally, a rare high proportion in recent history.

A5: Developing a strong domestic market is the cornerstone of the new development approach. Our new focus will be on promoting consumption, improving the supply-chain and industrial modernization, and expanding room for investment.

We're well-positioned to bank and support the clients in, from and into China by focusing on the sweet spot of our unique strength and expertise, and economic development priorities of China as it enters a new era of development.

A6: China is a strategically important and top priority market for Standard Chartered, and we're excited about the prospects of China's long-term development, and the continuous opening-up of China's financial sector, which presents exciting opportunities to us.

We expect Asia — particularly China — to lead the global economic rebound. China was the only major country that delivered positive growth in 2020 and is likely to be one of the major economies that enjoys the highest GDP growth this year. Our forecast for 2021 China GDP growth is 8 percent.

We believe China's economic recovery has been pivotal to the recovery in copper prices, boosting copper demand and imports. The country's new infrastructure campaign should further support copper demand through the build-out of the 5G network, electric vehicle charging infrastructure, ultrahigh voltage transmission lines, and wind power installations.

A7: China is committed to promoting the green and sustainable development of the society and economy, in which we believe green finance will play a vital role.

China will also continue promoting further opening-up and steadily improving renminbi internationalization, which provides a huge opportunity for the bank as well. We could play an even bigger role by working with our clients and peers to continue promoting and facilitating the cross-border usage of renminbi. We're also a leading international bank with an extensive branch network in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, and committed to delivering borderless client experiences and connectivity across the Greater Bay Area region and beyond through innovation.