With Spring Festival approaching, Premier Li Keqiang held a symposium with representatives of foreign experts working in China at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on Feb 2.

Premier Li extended festival greetings and best wishes to foreign experts in China and foreign friends who support China's modernization drive across the board.

Since reform and opening-up, groups of foreign experts have come and worked in China with their intelligence and strengths. Chinese people are grateful to them for their contributions to China's modernization drive.

Soliciting foreign experts' suggestions on China's government work is conducive to scientific and democratic policy-making. And it is in concert with both domestic and international development trends, the Premier said.

Experts from the United States, Italy, Singapore, Nepal, the United Kingdom, and France shared their views and suggestions on China's economy and finance, basic scientific research, COVID-19 prevention and control, education, innovation in science and technologies, environmental protection, and more.

Having heard experts' statements, Premier Li said the COVID-19 outbreak delivered a severe blow to the whole world in 2020. Under the strong leadership of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China with President Xi Jinping at the core, China's economic development made a hard-won achievement and saw positive growth for the whole year with Chinese people's joint efforts, and contributions from foreign experts.

Taking into consideration the epidemic’s impact, the Chinese government carried out targeted and effective micro policies that centered on market entities' development and basic needs of people's livelihood.

Those efforts, rather than indiscriminate strong stimulus, helped China's economy obtain relatively rapid recovery and development in a timely manner. That comes down to market forces and market entities' vitality, and ensures good results with reasonable policy costs, the Premier said.

Noting the complicated situations at home and abroad with difficulties and challenges ahead, Premier Li said the Chinese government will continue to coordinate epidemic prevention and control with economic and social development and keep consistency, stability, and sustainability of macro-level policies.

Efforts will be made to make sure the economy is running within an appropriate range, and the fundamentals sustaining China’s long-term economic growth remain stable, he added.

Premier Li said as the world's largest developing country, China holds huge market potential, and there still is a long way to go to realize modernization.

China will rely on reform and opening-up, and properly handle the relationship between the government and market, to build a new development paradigm, he said.

The Premier said the Chinese government will promote greater opening-up, and study advanced scientific ideas and research methods.

He welcomed more foreign experts to come to China, adding that the Chinese government will constantly improve the system of attracting foreign talents, providing more convenience for them to live and work in the country.

Vice-Premier Liu He, State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi, State Councilor and Secretary-General of the State Council Xiao Jie, and He Lifeng, vice-chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference and head of the National Development and Reform Commission, also attended the event.