Authorities in Changchun, the capital of Jilin Province, have acknowledged that the city is facing “unprecedented difficulties and challenges” in economic development. On July 22, CCP Secretary Zhang Enhui chaired a meeting to review the city’s first-half economic performance and discuss priorities for the remainder of the year.
The meeting stated that Changchun’s economy is confronting unprecedented difficulties and challenges. Officials were urged to remain clear-headed, calmly assess the situation, and accurately assess current economic conditions. They were instructed to recognize both the severity and complexity of the broader macroeconomic environment and the more direct and serious challenges the city is facing; acknowledge both their efforts (to improve) and the still existing shortcomings; and recognize both the progress in regional coordination and the widening disparities among different districts and sectors.
Analysts view the unusually candid assessment as a rare public acknowledgment by a local government of the severity of its economic problems, in contrast to Beijing’s longstanding narrative that China’s economy remains stable and continues to improve.
The economic development at China’s northeast has been declining for decades. Once considered one of the few economic bright spots in the region, Changchun has also experienced a sharp slowdown, with GDP falling 9.9 percent year over year in the first half of 2022.
Source: Lianhe Zaobao, July 24, 2026
https://www.zaobao.com.sg/news/china/story20260724-9412767