Focusing on enhancing the quality and upgrading of the service sector, the 2026 Government Work Report proposed establishing robust national standards for services and cultivating the "China Services" brand. As the first year of the 15th Five-Year Plan period begins, nurturing the "China Services" brand not only sets a precise direction for the high-quality development of the service industry but also serves as a key driver for activating new engines of China's economic growth. A thriving service sector is a hallmark of a modern economy and an inevitable trend in economic and social development. Data shows that since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, the value added of China's service industry has increased from 24.4856 trillion yuan in 2012 to 80.8879 trillion yuan in 2025. In 2025, the service sector accounted for 57.7% of China's GDP, contributing 61.4% to national economic growth.
In recent years, the scale and proportion of service consumption in China have expanded annually. In 2025, per capita service consumption expenditure made up 46.1% of per capita household consumption expenditure, approaching half of total consumer spending. Today, China's service industry has rapidly evolved from a "supporting sector" in economic development to a "ballast stone" of the national economy. The rapid growth of China's service sector benefits from two main factors: on one hand, the rapid rise of "Made in China" has ushered in a golden development period for producer services such as technological services, modern logistics, and inspection and testing; on the other hand, to continuously meet people's needs for a better life, consumer services covering daily necessities, housing, and transportation continue to develop new scenarios and business models.
The Fourth Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee clearly proposed to "promote the high-quality and efficient development of the service industry" and emphasized in the suggestions for the 15th Five-Year Plan to "enhance the integrated development level of modern services with advanced manufacturing and modern agriculture." The 2026 Government Work Report simultaneously emphasized brand building in both the "optimizing and upgrading traditional industries" and "expanding capacity and improving quality in the service sector" sections, marking a new phase in China's brand development driven by both manufacturing and services.
Chongqing, leveraging the national comprehensive pilot program for expanding service sector openness, has introduced knowledge-value credit loans to inject financial vitality into technology-based enterprises. Shenzhen is exploring a new model of "high-end manufacturing plus high-end services," continuously enhancing the development momentum in subsectors of producer services such as finance, exhibitions, and logistics. Liuzhou has created an online-offline integrated "one-stop" quality service platform to address the insufficient testing capabilities of small and medium-sized enterprises, helping drive the output value of the river snail rice noodle industry to exceed 75 billion yuan. Promoting the deep integration of modern services and advanced manufacturing is crucial for comprehensively strengthening the integrated development of the service sector, as well as an important pathway for cultivating a modern industrial system and driving high-quality development.
The extension of producer services toward the high end of the value chain can not only provide solid support for the transformation and upgrading of manufacturing but also create the combined advantage of "Made in China plus China Services," achieving synergistic industrial development. Meanwhile, developing consumer services is vital for improving people's livelihoods and represents an inherent requirement for promoting the upgrading of consumption structures. Continued popularity in cultural tourism and performing arts, rising public fitness consumption, iterative improvements in elderly care and child care services, and continuous optimization of healthcare supply demonstrate how consumption upgrading is driving consumer services toward higher quality and diversity. The continuous upgrading of livelihood needs constantly expands market demand for services and provides enduring momentum for building the "China Services" brand.
The service sector is like a vast ocean where demand serves as the sail, with market potential embedded in every ordinary person's aspiration for a better life. In recent years, the structure of China's service trade has been continuously optimized, with "China Services" accelerating their global presence. In 2025, China's total service import and export value exceeded 8 trillion yuan for the first time, a year-on-year increase of 7.4%. Travel service exports grew by 49.5%. The implementation of a 144-hour transit visa-free policy drove nearly a 30% increase in foreign arrivals. The service sector accounted for over 70% of actual utilized foreign investment. These figures demonstrate the international appeal of China's service industry.
High-level openness in the service sector has made "China Services" a prominent industrial名片, opening a new window for the world to understand China. The high-quality development of services is a strategic priority for building a new development pattern and promoting economic transformation and upgrading, as well as a key focus for this year's economic work. With brand building as the core driver, continuously promoting quality improvement, efficiency enhancement, and integrated development in the service sector will enable China's service industry to unleash greater growth potential, making "China Services" a globally renowned gold standard.
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