Niu Xinchun, a researcher at the China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations, said China and the US should avoid a showdown despite the non-stop frictions.

"Conflicts will be accompanied by cooperation," Niu said. "The Obama administration would balance its attempts to contain China and its willingness to cooperate with it."

At the Munich Security Conference Friday, Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi said a more developed China is an opportunity rather than a threat to the world.

"The argument that a strong nation is bound to seek hegemony finds no supporting case in China's history and goes against the will of the Chinese people," he said.

The WSJ called "a cheap currency, regulated interest rates and low energy prices" part of China's strategy, and that it is "stoking discontent in fellow developing countries, not just in Western capitals."

The export resurgence has reached into new markets, the WSJ said. A majority of China's exports now go to other developing countries, with exports to India, Brazil, Indonesia and Mexico growing by 30 to 50 percent in recent months, the WSJ reported, citing figures from China International Capital Corp.