BEIJING, Feb. 24 (Xinhua) -- As the impact of COVID-19 on China's economic growth is highly debated across the world, economists in the Middle East have voiced their confidence in the resilience and prospects of the Chinese economy.
Despite a short-term negative impact on China's economy, an economic recovery after the epidemic will largely offset the loss, according to the experts.
Turkish economist Dr. Merve Karacaer Ulusoy said that based on the experience of China's 2003 SARS outbreak -- a rapid recovery and steady growth of its economy within a short period of time after the epidemic was over -- the impact of the disease on the Chinese economy will be limited.
China's efforts in patient treatment, prevention and control of the virus, scientific research, and international cooperation have shown its determination and capacity to win the fight against the disease, said Ulusoy, an economics and finance specialist with the Ankara-based Institute of Strategic Thinking.
"With all measures to prevent the spread of the virus, China is doing its utmost to implement prevention measures in the right way," she said.
Noting that with an increasing number of recovered patients being reported recently China's current prevention and control measures have achieved positive results, Ulusoy expressed her belief that China would overcome the crisis in the near future.
Businesses across China have been gradually resuming operation, minimizing the fallout from the outbreak, so the negative effects of the virus on its economic and social development will be "temporary" and "limited," she said.
"China is the second largest economy in the world, and it plays a significant role in global development. Its economic relations with other countries in the world are quite complex. Therefore, it is natural that the outbreak of the virus affects the whole world," journalist Assayd Al-Zahra wrote in an article published in Dubai daily newspaper Gulf News.
"I noticed that there are intense scares about the effects of the virus on China, (with some people) talking about China's economic collapse, or the inevitable retreat of China's economic role and influence in the world, or the severe blow that the China's Belt and Road Initiative has received."
"Despite all these ... it can be said that with great confidence, China will overcome this challenge and recover from its effects," he wrote.
"The Chinese economy is not a random one that is growing along with developments or floundering due to crises, but is an economy with the highest degree of discipline and is based on thoughtful long-term planning," the journalist added.
Jawad Abbasi, who leads the Middle East and North Africa team of the GSMA, an industry organization representing the interests of wireless operators worldwide, said that the impact of the COVID-19 on the Chinese economy will be limited only to the current period, as the economy will return to its normal growth rates after the virus is defeated.
He said that modern technologies and remote working mechanisms will contribute greatly to reducing the epidemic's side effects on the economy, compared to what would have happened if the outbreak had occurred 20 years ago.
Some experts, according to Arab media, believe that compared to 2003, the ability of the Chinese economy to recover from damage caused by any virus outbreak has noticeably improved, thanks to a more developed "economic immune system," resulting from the development of technology and the service sector, allowing the general public to continue shopping and working by turning to e-commerce and other online services.
Noting that the overall impact of the disease on the Chinese economy is not yet clear, Dr. Mohamed Hamza al-Husseini, head of the Economic Committee of the Egyptian United Nations Association, however, said that when SARS broke out in China in 2003, the world thought it would take at least 10 or 15 years for the country to recover, but China in fact recovered within a short period and achieved tremendous economic success.
Despite temporary difficulties, the Chinese economy still has huge potential, he said, noting that the huge consumer market, the potential power of economic transformation, as well as effective decisions and policies made by the Chinese government are all major factors supporting steady economic growth.
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