Chinese President Xi Jinping has spent much of the past decade focused on stability. But as he lays the ground for a likely third term as leader, he’s facing more crises than ever, both at home and abroad.
The economy is being dragged down to its weakest growth in more than three decades, barring 2020’s pandemic year. The housing market is in crisis, with mounting defaults. A crackdown on the country’s biggest technology companies has scared off investors. And now Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is forcing China to reassess its support for Russian President Vladimir Putin, while managing increasingly fraught ties with the U.S.
Those threats are overshadowing Xi’s successes, like keeping the pandemic largely under control after the initial outbreak in Wuhan and declaring an end to absolute poverty. For a Communist Party highly sensitive to signs of social unrest linked to any economic downturn, the Chinese leader will be pushed to do more to stabilize growth as he makes a bid to stay in power.