Huang dramatized China's potential with forecasts. Its economic output will grow to US$4 trillion by 2020, from US$1.6 trillion today, he said, and its output per capita -- a more accurate measure of wealth -- will triple to US$3,000 per person.
For its part, the World Economic Forum says the Chinese turnout this year has been noteworthy, mostly because of the attendance of Huang, a member of the Politburo's powerful standing committee. The deputy governor of the People's Bank of China also came.
The conference organizers have gone to considerable lengths to make this a congenial place for China. There are no sessions on Taiwan -- a topic sure to drive away Chinese officials. Huang did not take questions from the audience.
"It's understood that some things about China don't come up in polite conversation at Davos," said Orville Schell, the dean of the Graduate School of Journalism at the University of California, Berkeley.
Politesse did break down occasionally. At a lunch held by Schell, several non-Chinese participants confronted the handful of Chinese guests about how Beijing could justify not allowing the Taiwanese people to vote on whether they wanted to be an independent nation.
After an awkward silence, a few Chinese spoke about the passionate feelings in China regarding Taiwan's status. Yuan Ming, the director of the Institute of American Studies at Pekjing University, alluded to the frustration that outsiders might have in seeking to understand China.
"The world needs China to play some roles," Yuan said in a polite yet weary tone. "But it's too early to rank ourselves among world nations. We do need some time to develop ourselves."
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