Davos focuses on China's role in economic recovery

The best and brightest in the spheres of politics and business are gathering in Davos this week, tackling global economic issues including growing concern over the U.S. fiscal cliff. CCTV correspondent, Jack Barton, explains why this means more focus on China to spur economic recovery.

In the snow covered Swiss town of Davos the mood remains as frosty as the landscape when it comes to the global economy. No surprise then that the World Economic Forum has already been consumed by discussions on China's potential for continued growth.

Duncan Freeman, SNR research fellow, said, "China, it looks like it's going to have stronger growth this year than last year obviously that's good for China but it's also good for the rest of the world."

Here at Davos the consensus is that China is still on track to surpass the US as the world's largest economy by 2020, which is precisely why there is so much focus here on the momentum of China's economy particularly when it comes to domestic consumption.

Even at its current trajectory entrepreneurs say China will continue to be a critical engine of global economic growth.

David Robert Jones, CEO of Havas, said, "China is critically important today and the Chinese economy has been so big, sorry, become so big that it's no longer the day that China gets pulled back down into the recession by the rest of the world but they do need to make the right decisions but I think China has been critical in holing up the world's economy and it will play a very important role in doing so this year as well."

And that's also why there is growing pressure, especially from the EU, for China to further open up its own markets.

Duncan Freeman said, "One of the key issues for the EU is market access in China in terms of exports and in terms of investment and this is one of the big issues that's just not going to go away as far as the EU is concerned."

But already it's clear that this year's forum theme of global economic recovery is pivoting on growth in Europe, more political unity and budget trimming in the US and continued growth in China.