On the road ahead

Goolam Ballim, Group chief economist at Standard Bank, based in Johannesburg

China's aggressive public policy-minded approach to development should ensure it reaches high-income status.

The world's second-largest economy is returning to the podium it occupied nearly two centuries ago.

The future of the world could be one of universal global prosperity.

George Magnus, Senior independent economic adviser to UBS

China has to be innovative because it cannot simply repeat what it has done before.

It needs to upskill its workforce to improve its total factor productivity.

The BRICS story is over and they will not be able to continue with 8 to 10 percent growth.

Joe Studwell, Founding editor of the China Economic Quarterly and author of How Asia Works: Success and Failure in the World's Most Dynamic Region

If China is to break through the trap the next 24 months are crucial for policymakers.

The Chinese economy - unlike other many other emerging nations - has been underpinned by agricultural reform.

China could be the last major economy to develop.

Bala Ramasamy, Professor of economics at the China Europe International Business School in Shanghai

Big cities such as Beijing and Shanghai have already broken through to high income.

It will be difficult for all regions in China to achieve high income since some have a per capita income the same as sub-Saharan Africa.

Chinese policymakers must continue to be innovative.

Tim Condon, Managing director and head of research for Asia with ING Financial Markets in Singapore

China can become one of the world's richest countries because it has been there before.

You cannot become as rich as Singapore by reading Lee Kuan Yew's book or everyone would have done it.

Getting to US and European levels of income is hard and that is why the middle-income trap exists.

Zhiwei Zhang, Chief economist, China, Nomura, based in Hong Kong

China is not on a certain path to high-income status.

Reform is not about policy guidelines but about concrete action.

Key sectors are still inefficient and monopolized, which is holding the economy back.

Charles Gore, Former head of research on Africa and least developed countries for UNCTAD, and honorary professor of economics at the University of Glasgow

Whether China makes it through the trap depends on whether policymakers understand the problems.

China is going through the most critical phase in its economic development.

We still live in a world where few countries have actually made the transition from least developed to high-income countries.

Miranda Carr, head of China research at strategic investment research company NSBO

China has a very competitive industrial sector, accounting for 40 percent of its GDP, which may drive it out of any middle-income trap.

Unlike other BRICS, it is not reliant on raw materials and commodities.

Not every country can achieve high-income status.

(China Daily European Weekly 07/26/2013 page7)