Tadashi Yanai, founder of the famous clothing brand UNIQLO, chairman and chief executive officer of the Japanese retail giant Fast Retailing, receives an interview with Xinhua in Tokyo, Japan, June 5, 2019. (Xinhua/Ma Caoran)
TOKYO, June 11 (Xinhua) -- "I believe the Chinese economy has a bright future," Tadashi Yanai, founder of the famous clothing brand UNIQLO, said.
Yanai, chairman and chief executive officer of the Japanese retail giant Fast Retailing, said in an exclusive interview with Xinhua recently that the Chinese economy has a vast market, resilience and ample room for growth.
While there might be signs of a slowdown in the Chinese economy in the short term, the outlook is bright in the long run, Yanai said.
China has a large market of more than 1.3 billion citizens, a rising middle class and people working hard to achieve a better life, he said.
China has also put forward such a great proposal as the Belt and Road Initiative to jointly promote economic development and achieve mutual benefit and win-win results with many other countries and regions, said Yanai.
In response to the U.S.-China trade frictions, Yanai said that "America first" is not a policy that would really benefit the U.S. people.
The economy has no borders, he said, countries worldwide are closely linked, and people of all countries look forward to a peaceful and stable life.
Yanai pointed out that it is impracticable to adopt a hegemonic attitude and measures of extreme pressure.
In the face of extreme pressure, countries should never give in and should explain the situations and positions to all countries in the world, he said.
The entrepreneur said that negotiation should be conducted on the basis of mutual respect and equality to push forward the settlement of the issue.
"I have always had confidence in the Chinese economy. In the past few decades, China has made remarkable achievements in its economic development," Yanai said.
Fast Retailing's rapid growth has been helped by its profound involvement in the Chinese market, the CEO said.
According to the company's latest semi-annual report released in April, sales in Chinese mainland grew by as much as 20 percent from September 2018 to February 2019, making it one of Fast Retailing's strong growth drivers.
Yanai said that he believes Japanese companies should seize the opportunity and increase their investment volume in China.
The friendly exchanges between Japan and China have a long history and Japan has benefited from traditional Chinese culture, he said.
The entrepreneur said that he hopes the two countries will continue to strengthen exchanges and cooperation in terms of culture, economy and in various other fields in the future to achieve mutual benefits and win-win results.