Mutually beneficial and win-win results have formed a very important experience for economic growth in Asia, said Justin Lin Yifu, former senior vice president and chief economist of the World Bank, on the sidelines of the Boao Forum for Asia (BFA) Annual Conference 2026 running from Tuesday to Friday in south China's Hainan Province.
Asia remains the world's primary growth engine, with its economy forecast to expand by 4.5 percent in 2026, according to a report released by the BFA on Tuesday.
Asia's share of the global GDP is projected to continue its upward trajectory, rising from 49.2 percent in 2025 to 49.7 percent in 2026 on a purchasing power parity basis, according to the report titled "Asian Economic Outlook and Integration Progress Annual Report 2026."
"Asia has become a main engine for global economic growth, which involves a lot of experience. Facing challenges of the world, Asian countries can provide Asian solutions that are based on our experience," said Lin, also dean of the Institute of New Structural Economics under the Peking University.
The foundations of Asian trade integration have continued to strengthen, the report noted, citing data that intra-regional trade dependence edged up from 56.3 percent in 2023 to 57.2 percent in 2024, as major economies across the region increasingly orient their trade ties toward one another.
"Leveraging respective comparative advantages within the framework of RCEP (Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership), and using respective growths to create development opportunities for other countries, such mutually beneficial and win-win results form a very important experience for the Asian economy," Lin said.
On the tech front, the report said, the global epicenter of artificial intelligence (AI) development is progressively shifting from Europe and the United States toward Asia.
"Capitalizing on their substantial digital populations, diverse application ecosystems, and coherent policy frameworks, Asian economies are rapidly evolving from AI followers into frontrunners," it said.
Lin said China has various comparative advantages in developing industries of the future represented by AI.
"China has a huge domestic market and rich application scenarios for AI, and as for hardwares required for AI growth, China has the world's most complete manufacturing categories to offer those. That's a great strength," he said.
Mutually beneficial, win-win results important experience for Asia's economic growth: expert
Mutually beneficial, win-win results important experience for Asia's economic growth: expert
Moscow residents highlighted bilateral trade flow and people-to-people exchanges while sharing their views on the cooperation achievements between China and Russia, ahead of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s state visit to China.
Putin will pay a state visit to China from May 19 to 20.
In interviews with China Global Television Network (CGTN), Moscow residents praised China's long history, rich culture, modern development and its friendly people.
"China is magnificent and one of the world's oldest civilizations. I really love traveling there. For example, Shanghai is a historic city, and China is a country with a great history and good people. They've done a great job with their policies and have shown other countries how to develop their economies," said Konstantin, a dancer.
"Actually, I've been to China, to Guangzhou. I really liked it there — the laws, the whole country itself, the prices," said Khushalay Islam Ayobovich, a construction worker.
"China is a wealthy country with a rich culture and advanced technologies, so to speak. It is developing very rapidly in terms of energy, industry and education. I believe it is a very good partner for Russia overall," said Dalak Abdulmalik Salamanovich, a student.
Another student, Evelina, also expressed a favorable view.
"(I have) a good impression (of China) — beautiful culture, mentality and pleasant, friendly people," said Evelina.
On bilateral cooperation, Salamanovich pointed to the growing presence of Chinese products in Russia.
"At the very least, even right now, we can see that there are many Chinese cars in Russia, such as Haval, Omoda and Geely. There have also been many breakthroughs in tourism. We see many Chinese tourists in Russia, and many Russian tourists in China as well," he said.
Ayobovich emphasized the mutual benefits of cooperation.
"I think cooperating and being friends with China would be very good for both Russians and Chinese people. Prices, trade — all of that is beneficial. I've been there myself, so I know what good products they have. You can build trade and create a successful business there. I think our Commander-in-Chief, Vladimir Putin, is trying to make things good for Russians, and that's why cooperation will continue at the highest level, in my opinion," the construction worker said.
Knowledge sharing between the two countries is also an important consideration for residents.
"A lot of technologies are actually coming from China. This includes construction and waste processing. China shares its knowledge with us. Of course, we export many resources there, such as gas and oil," said Konstantin.
Russian residents share hopes for strengthened China-Russia cooperation
