China's Belt and Road Initiative aims to connect
Asia, Europe, the Middle East and Africa with a vast logistics and
transport network, using roads, ports, railway tracks, pipelines, airports,
transnational electric grids and even fiber optic lines.
Widely seen as an attempt by China to construct a
massive, multi-national zone of economic and political influence that has
Beijing at its core, the plan at one point included 65 countries, which
together accounted for one-third of global GDP and 60 percent of the world's
population, or 4.5 billion people, according to Oxford Economics.
It's all part of Beijing's push to increase global clout — building
modern infrastructure can attract more investment and trade along the route.
The policy could also boost the domestic economy with demand abroad, and might
soak up some of the overcapacity
in China's industrial sector.
Assessing Chinese President Xi Jinping's flagship project, some have
expressed optimism
about the initiative
Source: CNBC