Li Keqiang on Economics

Li Keqiang, as China's former Premier, was known for advocating for market-oriented economic policies, often associated with the term "Likonomics," which focused on cutting red tape, reducing taxes on business, and promoting structural reform over sheer high-speed growth. He gained a reputation for preferring alternative economic indicators, such as electricity consumption and railway cargo volume, over official GDP figures, a concept that led to the creation of the famous Li Keqiang Index. His emphasis was placed on strong employment growth, stable consumer prices, and wage increases as primary goals for the government's macroeconomic policy.

His policy orientation, which favored market mechanisms and private/grassroots innovation, frequently diverged from the state-centric strategies favored by the paramount leader during his tenure. This divergence was sometimes channeled through campaign-style mobilizations, such as the annual "Mass innovation week," aimed at promoting small start-ups. Analysts noted that while Li Keqiang championed reforms, his influence waned as power centralized, leading to a convergence with the state-led approach, and his successor's policy tone has aligned more closely with the state-centric strategy.