US Media: Xi Jinping's Focus on National Security and Technological Self-Reliance Plunges Chinese Economy into Difficulties
According to the Wall Street Journal, since Xi Jinping became China's leader in 2012, the country's military power has strengthened and its technological development is closing the gap with the US, dominating global manufacturing. However, the Chinese economy is in trouble, with consumer confidence lost and a bleak job market. This disconnect shows Xi Jinping prioritizing China's security over its economy.
📋 Article Processing Timeline
- 📰 Published: May 11, 2026 at 17:01
- 🔍 Collected: May 11, 2026 at 17:32 (30 min after Published)
- 🤖 AI Analyzed: May 11, 2026 at 17:43 (11 min after Collected)
Central News Agency
(Central News Agency, Taipei, May 11) The Wall Street Journal reported that since Xi Jinping became China's leader in 2012, China's military power has become stronger, its technological development is narrowing the gap with the United States, and it dominates global manufacturing. However, the Chinese economy is in trouble, with consumer confidence completely lost and a bleak job market. The disconnect between these two aspects shows that Xi Jinping has prioritized China's security over its economy.
The Wall Street Journal reported on the 10th that Xi Jinping advocates that "security is the prerequisite for development," using this to justify the state's stronger role in the economy and investing hundreds of billions of dollars in pursuing self-sufficiency in technology, agriculture, and other fields.
Since Xi Jinping took office, China's military expenditure has more than doubled. China's military budget for 2026 is 1.909561 trillion RMB, an increase of 7% compared to 2025. In the past three years, China's military expenditure growth has remained at 7.2%.
China's massive investment in technologies such as artificial intelligence and robotics has helped consolidate its position as the world's largest manufacturing country and has created relatively strong economic growth in technology-oriented cities like Shenzhen and Hangzhou.
The report also cited examples: Xi'an significantly cut spending on public projects such as road maintenance last year, and primary and secondary school expenditures also decreased by more than 10%, but technology spending increased by about 80%. Foshan's economic growth last year was only 0.2%, and many factories were empty; local officials, however, hope to transform the city into a robotics hub, but the robotics industry is too small to save the economy.
The report states that the current challenge for China is that Xi Jinping's strategy has not generated enough employment or investment to prevent a further slowdown in overall economic growth. As falling housing prices hit consumer sentiment, forcing China to rely more on exports, this has angered Western trading partners who must absorb China's excess capacity.
The Chinese government has not yet launched large-scale economic stimulus measures to help people increase consumption, and at the same time, the government has been slow to strengthen the social safety net, leading people to prefer saving over spending. Although China has strengthened its pension system and other social security programs in recent years, total social security expenditure was estimated to be only about 9% of GDP in 2023, comparable to countries like Mexico and Turkey, and less than half the level of many developed countries.
Therefore, while China appears powerful externally, its domestic population is forced to lower their expectations. (Edited by Chen Kai-yu / Chiu Kuo-chiang) 1150511
Choose to stand with facts, every sponsorship you make is a force to protect press freedom.
Download the Central News Agency "First-hand News" APP to get the latest news instantly.
The text, images, and audio-visual content of this website may not be reproduced, publicly broadcast, publicly transmitted, or utilized without authorization.
(Central News Agency, Taipei, May 11) The Wall Street Journal reported that since Xi Jinping became China's leader in 2012, China's military power has become stronger, its technological development is narrowing the gap with the United States, and it dominates global manufacturing. However, the Chinese economy is in trouble, with consumer confidence completely lost and a bleak job market. The disconnect between these two aspects shows that Xi Jinping has prioritized China's security over its economy.
The Wall Street Journal reported on the 10th that Xi Jinping advocates that "security is the prerequisite for development," using this to justify the state's stronger role in the economy and investing hundreds of billions of dollars in pursuing self-sufficiency in technology, agriculture, and other fields.
Since Xi Jinping took office, China's military expenditure has more than doubled. China's military budget for 2026 is 1.909561 trillion RMB, an increase of 7% compared to 2025. In the past three years, China's military expenditure growth has remained at 7.2%.
China's massive investment in technologies such as artificial intelligence and robotics has helped consolidate its position as the world's largest manufacturing country and has created relatively strong economic growth in technology-oriented cities like Shenzhen and Hangzhou.
The report also cited examples: Xi'an significantly cut spending on public projects such as road maintenance last year, and primary and secondary school expenditures also decreased by more than 10%, but technology spending increased by about 80%. Foshan's economic growth last year was only 0.2%, and many factories were empty; local officials, however, hope to transform the city into a robotics hub, but the robotics industry is too small to save the economy.
The report states that the current challenge for China is that Xi Jinping's strategy has not generated enough employment or investment to prevent a further slowdown in overall economic growth. As falling housing prices hit consumer sentiment, forcing China to rely more on exports, this has angered Western trading partners who must absorb China's excess capacity.
The Chinese government has not yet launched large-scale economic stimulus measures to help people increase consumption, and at the same time, the government has been slow to strengthen the social safety net, leading people to prefer saving over spending. Although China has strengthened its pension system and other social security programs in recent years, total social security expenditure was estimated to be only about 9% of GDP in 2023, comparable to countries like Mexico and Turkey, and less than half the level of many developed countries.
Therefore, while China appears powerful externally, its domestic population is forced to lower their expectations. (Edited by Chen Kai-yu / Chiu Kuo-chiang) 1150511
Choose to stand with facts, every sponsorship you make is a force to protect press freedom.
Download the Central News Agency "First-hand News" APP to get the latest news instantly.
The text, images, and audio-visual content of this website may not be reproduced, publicly broadcast, publicly transmitted, or utilized without authorization.