Communist Party amid a slowing economy.
At that time, Xi’s use of animal metaphors sparked discussions among observers who generally interpreted his warnings as being related to different kinds of economic risks. “Black swans” are events that cannot be predicted but have a profound impact on markets, while “grey rhinos” are known risks that have the potential to cause great harm but which people choose to ignore.
One year later, Xi’s wildlife metaphors about the dangers facing the country have proved prophetic on a more literal level. Scientists and medical experts have pinned down bats as the probable source of the coronavirus outbreak originating from a wet market which has stalls for trading wildlife animals in Wuhan of Hubei province. The bats are believed to have infected other animals which transmitted the virus to humans.
