I'm back in 1990

Chapter 1041: Conscience and Responsibility

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July 2011 was exceptionally hot and humid. The summer seminar of the China Economics Annual Conference was held in a sanatorium in Beidaihe, and the attendees were all prominent figures in the economics field.

Huang Xiaochuan, in particular, became a key figure at the seminar due to his dual identity.

When people in academia mention him, their feelings are always somewhat complicated. Those who are jealous of him say that he is not doing his job properly, while those who agree with him believe that he has vision that is beyond ordinary people.

However, it is undeniable that since Huang Xiaochuan won the Clark Medal, no other person in China has received this award. Moreover, Huang Xiaochuan not only has a solid theoretical foundation, but the scale of the industries he controls is also astonishing. This shows that he has truly put his knowledge into practice, that is, combined theory with practice. He can be called a role model, and no one can match him.

Therefore, his words still carry a lot of weight in academia. It can be said that an academic conference without his participation cannot be called an important conference.

At this moment, Huang Xiaochuan, as always, sat on the stage and participated in the discussion.

The host is guiding the discussion on the global economic landscape and the challenges China currently faces.

At first, Huang Xiaochuan just listened quietly. He had no intention of speaking today; he was simply there to listen to other people's insightful opinions.

Unexpectedly, the host suddenly asked him, "Professor Huang, you met Krugman at the Davos Forum last year, right? What's your take on his 2008 viewpoint on the 15-year theory of China's economy?"

As soon as he said this, the conference hall fell silent, and everyone's eyes were focused on Huang Xiaochuan.

Huang Xiaochuan smiled and asked, "Which of his viewpoints?"

The host said, "It's his 15-year theory. He said that China is using low-priced goods to impact the global market. When most countries realize this in the future, they may boycott it, which will affect China's economy. He also gave a solution, which is industrial transformation and upgrading. However, he mentioned that before transformation and upgrading, the people must become rich."

Seeing that things were getting out of hand, Huang Xiaochuan took the microphone, intending to say a few words.

"I did see Krugman's view in 08, and he has said it on many occasions, so I also talked to him about this issue in Davos this spring."

At this point, he took a leisurely sip of tea and continued, "Krugman has a sharp tongue, but I basically agree with his point of view."

At this point, someone raised their hand and asked, "Professor Huang, what exactly do you mean by this? Do you have a different opinion?"

Huang Xiaochuan shook his head: "I don't have any objections, I just made some additions."

He simply stood up and supported himself on the podium with both hands.

"Krugman said that once most countries realize the impact of cheap goods on their own, they will begin to boycott them. I think this judgment is correct, but I think that time may come sooner, perhaps in less than fifteen years."

As we all know, since the 2008 global financial crisis, global trade protectionism has risen much faster than we imagined. The United States intends to kick out the WTO and create a new trade organization, and they are already doing so. Europe is launching more and more trade investigations, and our Southeast Asian neighbors are also protecting their own industries. These are all signals, and I think everyone here is aware of them.

Many people in the conference hall nodded.

"Therefore, industries must upgrade." Huang Xiaochuan raised his voice, "because we know that stagnation and lack of progress will only lead to one result: death."

"As Krugman has already explained, the way to do it is to make everyone rich."

He looked down at the audience: "In the past thirty years, our growth model has been production-driven. At that time, we had to survive first, so we had to lower factor costs, expand production capacity, and seize the market with low prices. But now we have to shift to consumption-driven growth, which means we have to make ordinary people the ones who pay the most. This is easy to say, but not easy to do, because it involves reshaping the distribution of interests."

But Huang Xiaochuan has the confidence to say this because the company he controls is putting this into practice, allowing ordinary people to receive a dignified income.

Therefore, he distributed most of his company's profits to his employees and workers. A considerable portion of the money he earned in foreign financial markets was brought back to subsidize companies that were expanding but not yet profitable.

At this point, someone in the audience asked, "Professor Huang, do you think we can make a turnaround?"

Huang Xiaochuan was silent for a few seconds, then he said firmly, "It's possible, but it definitely won't be that smooth."

He smiled and then steered the conversation back to more than a decade ago: "To be honest, a big reason I resigned from my teaching position was that I felt that after spending too much time in the school, many of the issues discussed were too abstract. Money, income, consumption—these words are spoken lightly, but those who have truly lacked money have a different feeling."

"I am lucky. Since I can remember, life has gradually improved. By the time I went to junior high, high school and college, the development of society and the economy could be described as changing rapidly. But looking back, how many years have passed?"

Many people, after just a few days of good fortune, start to lose their bearings and become complacent. Isn't that ridiculous?

I, Huang, am not very talented, and I can only try my best to stick to my own way. Perhaps some people will say I am wrong in the future, but I firmly believe that I am right, and that social wealth belongs to society.

Huang Xiaochuan's words resonated with many people.

At this point, Huang Xiaochuan sat back down in his seat: "So, going back to Krugman's point, I agree with him, but I would like to add one more point: industrial upgrading is the direction, and boosting domestic demand is the key. What domestic demand needs is to make people rich. When people are rich and have money in their hands, they will naturally consume."

After finishing his speech, Huang Xiaochuan paused for a moment, then earnestly addressed everyone present: "This matter is not just about one person, but about all of us economists here. Making the country better and better is our conscience and responsibility."

Some people nodded, some discussed, and for a moment the noise inside the conference hall drowned out the cicadas chirping outside.