汇集中英智慧，丰裕人民生活
Pool Our Wisdom to Create Prosperity
刘晓明大使在2019年汇丰集团新春午宴上的讲话
Speech by H.E. Ambassador Liu Xiaoming at the HSBC Chinese New Year Celebration 2019
2019年2月12日，伦敦四季饭店
Four Seasons Hotel, London, 12 February 2019
尊敬的汇丰集团主席杜嘉祺先生，
尊敬的各位大臣，
尊敬的各位议员，
女士们、先生们、朋友们：
Chairman Mark Tucker,
Ministers,
My Lords,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Dear Friends:
大家下午好！
Good afternoon!
很高兴连续第九年出席汇丰集团新春午宴。今年是中国农历猪年，近期我出席了不少英国各界举办的春庆活动，发现人们对猪年有不同的解读。有人认为，猪代表着“懒惰”和“邋遢”，还有人认为应当译成“野猪年”（Year of boar），因为野猪代表“凶猛”和“力量”。事实上，在中国传统文化中，猪是六畜之首，猪年意味着风调雨顺、丰裕富足。
I have attended HSBC Chinese New Year Celebration eight times in as many years. Today, it is a real pleasure to be back for the ninth time. The year 2019 is the Year of the Pig. Recently I attended quite a few Chinese New Year celebrations hosted by British friends from all walks of life. I find that they have different interpretations of the Year of the Pig. Some people think pig symbolises “laziness” and “sloppiness”. Some like the “Year of the Boar”, because they prefer the ferocity and strength of the boar. The fact is, in China, pig is traditionally regarded as the most important of the six domesticated animals. The Year of the Pig foretells good weather and bumper harvest.
那么，猪年对于中国和中英关系意味着什么呢？最近，国际上对中国经济有不同的解读，有唱响的，也有唱衰的。有人担心中美“贸易战”严重冲击中国经济，有人渲染中国经济2018年增长率降至近28年来最低，还有人声称中国改革开放出现停滞甚至倒退。中国经济到底怎么样？我想，借助汇丰的简称HSBC来回答这些问题。
Now, what will the Year of the Pig bring to China and China-UK relations? The Chinese economy is drawing global attention lately. Some people talk it up. Some others talk it down. There are worries about the negative impact of China-US “trade war”. There are concerns about the slowest growth rate in 28 years. There are even claims that the reform and opening up have stopped or even back-paddled. So, what is the real situation with the Chinese economy? I think the answer can be found in the name of your group, H-S-B-C.
H是健康（Healthy）。去年，中国经济不仅总量再上新台阶，达13.6万亿美元，稳居世界第二，而且经济结构更加优化，发展更加绿色。去年以来，我们调结构、促转型，取得积极成效。基建投资增速放缓，制造业投资、民间投资增速回升，高技术产业投资增速喜人。新旧产能转化的态势更趋明显，各种新产业、新产品、新业态、新模式不断涌现。中国经济更加注重“绿色增长”，2018年万元人民币GDP能耗比上年下降3.1%，清洁能源消费量占能源消费总量比重比上年提高约1.3%。中国经济的体魄更健康，正稳步从高速增长迈向高质量发展阶段。
H stands for “healthy”. In 2018, China continued to be the world’s second largest economy, with its GDP setting a new record of $13.6 trillion. More importantly, this is achieved on the basis of optimized economic structure, shifting growth model and greener development. Investment slowed down in infrastructure but accelerated in manufacturing and the private sector. The greatest increase was in high-tech industries. Outdated production capacity was being replaced. New products, new industries and new business models kept emerging. Growth became greener: Energy consumption per unit GDP decreased by 3.1%; the share of clean energy in total energy consumption increased by 1.3%. As a result, the Chinese economy is healthier as it shifts from high-speed growth to high-quality growth.
S是强劲（Strong）。2018年中国经济实现了6.6%的平稳增长，这一增速虽然比以往略低，但是在保持30多年高速增长、经济总量近14万亿美元的高基数上取得的。因此，我们不仅要看增速，更要看增量。去年中国新增GDP就达到1.4万亿美元，相当于澳大利亚的经济总量。相比之下，2007年中国经济增速高达14.2%，但增量仅为6千多亿美元。近年来，中国经济一直是世界经济增长的主要动力源，对世界经济增长的平均贡献率超过30%。近日，英国媒体评称，中、美、欧是推动世界经济的“三大引擎”，中国依然保持强劲发展势头，是世界经济的最大动力。我认同这些看法。
The second letter S stands for “strong”. In 2018, the Chinese economy grew by 6.6%. This is slightly slower than previous years, but given the size of the Chinese economy, $14 trillion, and more than 30 years of high-speed growth, this rate is nonetheless significant. When it comes to China’s economic growth, we should look at increment as well as speed. The GDP increment of last year was around $1.4 trillion, which was roughly the total GDP of Australia. It is also much higher than China’s own GDP increment of over $600 billion in 2007 when the growth rate was a staggering 14.2%. Over the years, China has been a major powerhouse for world economic growth. We have contributed an average of over 30% to world economic growth. A recent British media report says that, among the “three major engines” of the world economy, namely, China, the US and the EU, China remains to be the largest one with a robust growth momentum. I couldn’t agree more with this.
B是红利（Bonus）。中国持续发展将继续为世界各国带来更多红利。中国的进口贸易已成为世界经济再平衡的重要力量，对稳定大宗商品价格，拉动原材料出口国经济复苏起到重要作用。中国市场是世界消费增长的关键力量，近年来，中国最终消费对世界消费增长年均贡献率达23.4%，高于美、日、欧等经济体，中国还连续多年保持着世界第一大出境旅游客源国地位。2018年，在上海举行的中国国际进口博览会吸引了172个国家、地区和国际组织参会，3600多家企业、40多万名境内外采购商参展，现场意向成交金额高达578.3亿美元，这里面包括英国的20亿英镑。今年，中国还将举办第二届进博会，欢迎英国各界朋友积极参与。
The third letter B stands for “bonus”. With sustained development, the Chinese economy continues to be a bonus to the world. By importing from the world, China will help balance the world economy, stabilise commodity prices and support recovery in raw material exporters. The Chinese market has been a key force driving global consumption. In recent years, the average annual contribution of China’s final consumption expenditure to global consumption growth was 23.4%, higher than that of the US, Japan and the EU. China has also been the world’s largest source of outbound tourists for many years in a row. Last November, the first China International Import Expo was held in Shanghai. More than 3,600 companies and over 400,000 purchasers from 172 countries, regional economies and international organisations took part in the Expo. A total of $57.83 billion worth of deals were signed, including £2 billion deals signed with UK companies. Later this year, the second International Import Expo will take place. I look forward to a strong representation from Britain at the event.
C是合作（Cooperative）。2018年中国经济政策的关键词就是“开放”。习近平主席庄严承诺，“中国开放的大门不会关闭，只会越开越大”。去年，我们宣布了一系列扩大开放的重大举措，包括继续深化市场化改革、保护产权和知识产权、鼓励公平竞争、主动扩大进口等。中国金融业双向开放也在提速，监管层接连发布多个金融领域对外开放的政策举措，涉及外资银行、保险、证券、信托等诸多领域。这些举措将优化外商投资环境，提供更多法律保障，增强外商投资信心。2018年，中国外贸进出口总值30.51万亿元；全年实际使用外资8856.1亿元，创下了“两个历史新高”。“资本是用脚投票的”，由此看出，国际社会对中国经济的未来再次投下了信任票。
The last letter C stands for “cooperative”. The key word of China’s economic policies in 2018 is “openness”. This is a solemn pledge made by President Xi Jinping, who said, “China will not close its door; instead, China will open its door even wider to the world.” In line with this pledge, China announced a number of important measures of further opening up last year, including deepening market-oriented reform, protecting property rights and IPR, encouraging fair competition, and expanding import. The opening up of the financial sector is also picking up speed. New opening-up measures cover foreign banks, insurance, securities and trust. They will improve the business environment for foreign investment, provide more effective legal guarantee, and boost the confidence of foreign businesses. As a result, 2018 saw China’s import and export totaling 30.51 trillion RMB yuan and paid-in investment reaching 885.61 billion RMB yuan. Both set new records. Capital votes with their feet. In 2018, the international community cast a vote of confidence in the economic prospects of China.
如果我讲的HSBC提振了大家对中国经济的信心，那么多年来汇丰集团更是以实际行动传递着这份信心。汇丰集团是世界上唯一一家以中国两座城市名字命名的金融机构，是最早进入中国市场的英国企业之一，也是与中国合作最好的外国企业之一。汇丰集团目前已在中国大陆50多个城市设立了超过170个服务网点，成为内地网点最多、地域覆盖最广的外资银行。过去18年里，汇丰集团16次获得《金融亚洲》杂志“中国最佳外资银行”称号。我谨对汇丰集团表示敬意和祝贺！
I hope the HSBC I just outline will bolster your confidence in Chinese economy. And I know for sure that the HSBC Group has been spreading confidence in China through its concrete actions. HSBC is the only financial institution in the world whose name reflects two Chinese cities. It was one of the first British companies to enter Chinese market. It is one of foreign companies that enjoy the closest links with China. It has set up more than 170 banking outlets in over 50 cities on Chinese mainland, topping all other foreign banks. It had been awarded “Best Foreign Bank in China” by Finance Asia for 16 times in the past 18 years. Please allow me to take this opportunity to pay tributes and offer my congratulations to HSBC for your achievements!
长风破浪会有时，直挂云帆济沧海。我想，猪年对中国意味着吉祥，对中英关系意味着机遇，对汇丰集团意味着丰硕。让我们携手“汇集中英智慧、丰裕人民生活”，共同为推进中英关系“黄金时代”做出新的更大贡献！
Let me quote a famous line from an ancient Chinese poem to conclude my remarks. A time will come to ride the wind and cleave the waves; I’ll set my cloud-white sail and cross the sea which raves. I believe that the Year of the Pig will be an auspicious year for China, a promising year for China-UK relations, and a prosperous year for HSBC. The Chinese name for HSBC is “Hui Feng”, meaning respectively “pool” and “prosper”. I hope we can pool the wisdom of both China and the UK to make our people prosper and to make new and greater contribution to the China-UK “Golden Era”!
最后，祝大家猪年吉祥、诸事顺遂！
In conclusion, I wish you a happy and successful Year of the Pig!
谢谢！
Thank you!