On the afternoon of May 10th, 2019, the eighth “New Era China Youth Economic Forum” opening ceremony was held at the Lecture Hall of SEPKU. The forum was hosted by SEPKU and the PKU Youth League Council. Professor Ye Jingyi, Deputy Secretary of the PKU Council, Professor Dong Zhiyong, Dean of SEPKU, Associate Professor Cui Jianhua, Secretary of the SEPKU Council, and Wang Yiming, Peking University Youth League Secretary, attended the opening ceremony. Thomas J.Sargent, awardee of the Nobel Prize in Economics in 2011, attended the ceremony as the distinguished guest. Other participants included almost 100 delegates from School of Economics and Management of PKU, Tsinghua University and 40 other universities at home and abroad.

The Opening Ceremony I

　　To begin, Professor Ye Jingyi, Deputy Secretary of the PKU Council, presented Professor Sargent with a certificate of Honorary Professorship. The guests then unveiled a scroll to open the forum.

The Opening Ceremony II

　　Professor Dong Zhiyong gave welcoming remarks to the forum. He extended his congratulations on the opening of this forum and gave a sincere welcome to the delegates present. This forum took place on the 100th anniversary of the May Fourth Movement, and therefore Prof. Dong emphasized that the keynote speech Chairman Xi Jinping made at the commemoration of the 100th anniversary of the May Fourth Movement should be carefully learned in order to grasp the new demands for the youth economists in the new era. He then proposed three suggestions for youth economists. First, we should contribute Chinese wisdom to the world by extracting essential laws based on the history of the practice of socialism with Chinese characteristics. Second, we should have a good command of society and new methods to avoid isolation from the times. Third, we should strive for achievements through endeavor.

Prof Dong Zhiyong giving opening remarks

　　Wang Yiming, Peking University Youth League Secretary, then delivered a speech. He praised the forum for its important role in seeking youth consensus and promoting academic exchange as well as appealing to every participant to recall the aspiration of the May Fourth Movement predecessors in serving the country and to send out a strong voice of the times. He pointed out that the youth should actively respond to the Chairman’s call, study hard, value time, and bravely become pioneers and dedicators. He also encouraged delegates to value the precious opportunity of academic discussion, propose new theories despite difficulties, and offer youthful energy. 

Wang Yiming delivering the speech

　　Subsequently, Wang Shengbo, the chairman of the National Association of Students and 2016 Ph.D. candidate of SEPKU, made a speech as the student representative. He mentioned that this forum offered a great chance to deeply understand the earnest message entrusted by the Chairman and leading youth to shoulder contemporary responsibility. He later shared four attitudes youth economists should have to make one’s own contributions to our country’s construction with wisdom and energy.

Wang Shengbo giving his speech

　　Lastly, Professor Sargent gave an academic report on “American Policies on Tariffs and Trade: History and Present”. Grounding his speech on Clashing over Commerce，he briefly reviewed American policies on tariffs and trade during different historical phases and pointed out that American policy orientation may aggravate the uncertainty of the international trade environment. Prof. Sargent suggested that historical experience serves as an effective tool to face the future. When we analyze the influence of policies on tariffs, subsidies and trade restrictions, we should not only clarify the features of different tools, but also think deeply on two aspects, namely who should determine the use of policies, and for whom different policies are made. Prof. Sargent affirmed again his appreciation of free and equal trade policy, agreeing with the trade policy China has adopted since reform and opening-up. From his perspective, current American policies in trade protection would do harm to most Americans and trigger unexpected negative impacts, according to historical experience. In addition, employment issue in the United States cannot be solved by protecting low-skilled domestic labor, as unemployment should be ascribed to technological improvement. After the report, Sargent answered students’ questions in detail with respect to trade balance and trade deficits.

Prof Sargent delivering a speech

　　This year marks the 100th anniversary of the May Fourth Movement. The eighth “New Era China Youth Economic Forum” at SEPKU assembles elites all over the country to pave the way towards the future by reviewing the history, serving as the expression channel of young economists in the new era.