China a ‘great partner’ for PH – Zhao

EMPHASIZING his trust and confidence in the Philippine economy under the helm of President Rodrigo Duterte, China’s Ambassador to Manila Zhao Jianhua says Beijing is a “great partner” for Manila. “I am more confident and optimistic about the future of the Philippine economy because of trust,” he says Friday at The 5th Business Forum, organized by The Manila Times, in Davao City.

Zhao, who says China wants emergency powers granted to Duterte so that infrastructure projects to be funded by Beijing would be fast-tracked and completed before the latter’s term ends in 2022, takes note of the Philippines as being the fastest-growing economy in all of Asia, with a 6.8-percent GDP growth in 2016, exceeding even that of China’s 6.7 percent, as compared to Vietnam’s 6.2 percent and Indonesia’s 5 percent.