Chinese economy forges ahead with new, higher-quality progre

Technicians operate robotic arms to process components for new energy vehicles at a company in Changxing Economic and Technological Development Zone of Huzhou City, east China's Zhejiang Province, on Feb. 5, 2025. (Photo by Tan Yunfeng/Xinhua)

BEIJING, March 2 (Xinhua) -- China's economy remained robust despite headwinds last year, achieving stable year-on-year GDP growth of 5 percent and making new and higher-quality progress across economic and social sectors. This further solidifies its role as a key contributor and stabilizer for the global economy.

The newly released data by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) captures the remarkable trajectory of China's economic development over the past year, said Sheng Laiyun, deputy head of the NBS, noting that the data presents a panoramic picture of China's economy, characterized by stable performance, progressive momentum and strong resilience.

The figures highlight China's growing national strength and rising global influence. The country's economic aggregate continued to scale new heights in 2025, exceeding 140 trillion yuan (about 20.22 trillion U.S. dollars) for the first time, and achieving the development goal for the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-2025).

In 2025, China's per capita GDP reached 99,665 yuan, or 13,953 U.S. dollars at the average annual exchange rate, staying above 13,000 U.S. dollars for three consecutive years. Driven by scientific and technological innovation, labor productivity rose by 6.1 percent year on year in 2025, 1.1 percentage points higher than GDP growth.

With 5-percent GDP growth and contributing around 30 percent of global economic expansion, China remains the foremost driver and stabilizer of the world economy, Sheng noted. As the world's second-largest import market for 17 consecutive years and with steady outbound investment, China has shared its development dividends with the rest of the world and fulfilled its responsibility in global development.

Last year, China cultivated new growth drivers and shaped new advantages in the process of upgrading and transforming toward new and higher-quality development to drive economic growth, the data reveals. In 2025, total investment in research and development increased by 8.1 percent year on year, while the ratio to GDP reached 2.8 percent, exceeding the average level of members of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development for the first time.

The added value of high-tech manufacturing enterprises above the designated size increased by 9.4 percent compared with the previous year, and the export value of high-tech products rose by 13.2 percent in 2025. The output of service robots, memory chips and 3D printing equipment all recorded double-digit growth last year, reflecting new momentum in China's industrial development.

China has also seen continued improvement in the quality and efficiency of its green and low-carbon transformation. The construction of a new energy system is accelerating, while the proportion of clean energy consumption in total energy consumption has risen to 30.4 percent. Output of green products such as new energy vehicles, charging piles and solar cells is also growing rapidly in China.

Amid a volatile global environment, China has deepened its integration into the international division of labor, steadily expanded institutional opening-up, and promoted high-quality interaction between domestic and international economic flows.

In 2025, China's goods trade value exceeded 45 trillion yuan for the first time, up 3.8 percent year on year. It is expected to rank as the world's largest goods trader for nine consecutive years, serving as a key link in stabilizing global industrial and supply chains, said Sheng.

China's trade with countries along the Belt and Road accounted for 51.9 percent of its total foreign trade last year. Meanwhile, it has signed 24 free trade agreements with 31 countries and regions. The Hainan Free Trade Port in south China launched full-island customs clearance operations in 2025, further strengthening its role as a high-level institutional opening-up platform.

Reform across China has deepened steadily, with progress made in key areas such as fiscal and taxation reform. Efforts have also been intensified to improve the business environment and address involution-style competition, according to the NBS.

Key outcomes include an average of 26,000 new enterprises established per day in 2025. Preferential tax and fee policies supporting technological innovation and manufacturing sectors, meanwhile, have reduced corporate burdens by 2.9 trillion yuan, the data reveals.

With a slew of policies supporting key livelihood areas including employment, China created 12.67 million new urban jobs in 2025. Residents' per capita disposable income rose by 5 percent in real terms last year, keeping pace with economic growth. Driven by consumption-boosting policies such as trade-in programs, service consumption accounted for 46.1 percent of residents' total per capita consumption expenditure in 2025.

China's social security system was further expanded last year. By the end of 2025, 1.08 billion people were covered by basic pension insurance and 1.33 billion by basic medical insurance. Last year, a total of 1.21 million units of government-subsidized housing were started or secured as part of broader efforts to improve social services, the NBS noted.