China likely to pull ahead on digitization after growing economy despite coronavirus

Beijing – With China likely to have been the only major country to achieve positive economic growth in 2020 amid the COVID-19 pandemic, fears are mounting that Japan will fall further behind the world's second-largest economy, particularly in digital technology. Some foreign affairs experts are optimistic on China's rise in the digital field, saying it will provide commercial opportunities for Japanese companies -- many of which have been bolstering their business relations with Chinese firms. Others, however, have warned that unless Japan makes serious efforts to promote its own digital competency as a national strategy, the world's third-biggest economy could be swallowed up by China's more influential platform in the not-so-distant future. Although Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga has pledged to make digitalization a top policy priority since taking office in September, he has yet to yield visible results as he has had to concentrate on steps to contain the virus crisis. China's economy is expected to "gain momentum in 2021 with domestic demand bouncing back from the coronavirus shock," probably allowing the Communist-led nation to spend "huge money" on developing digital technology, a diplomatic source in Beijing said.