My Lords,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Dear Friends:

Good evening, and welcome to the Chinese Embassy!

Today is the 23rd day of the last month of the Year of the Pig. According to tradition, today is known as "Xiao Nian", or "Minor Chinese New Year". This is the day to start all the Chinese New Year preparations.

It is a real delight to have you, my British friends from all walks of life, with us on this auspicious day to say goodbye to the Year of the Pig and celebrate the Year of the Rat.

As the first of the 12 zodiac animals, rat symbolises tenacity, shrewdness, cleverness and longevity. With these auspicious promises, I wish all the friends present today a happy and prosperous Year of the Rat!

The year 2019 was a fruitful year and a year of greater sense of gains, happiness and security for the Chinese people. More than 2,000 years ago, a Chinese sage taught us, "The root of the world is in the state, and the root of the state is in the family. So a happy family brings prosperity." Better life for tens of thousands of Chinese families has been the persistent pursuit of the Chinese Government. In 2019, great success has been achieved in this aspect.

First, high-quality economic growth provided Chinese families with a greater sense of gains.

As socialism with Chinese characteristics enters a new era, China's economy is shifting from high-speed growth to high-quality growth. In the past year, China

remained committed to the new development concept,

deepened supply-side structural reform,

promoted industrial transformation and upgrading,

advanced industrialisation, IT application, urbanisation and agricultural modernisation,

pursued innovation-driven development,

and built an open economy at a higher level.

In 2019, China's GDP exceeded $14 trillion, and per capita GDP is expected to reach a new high of $10,000. More than 13 million jobs were created. These have helped meet people's growing needs for a better life.