On February 28, the National Bureau of Statistics released the "Statistical Communiqué of the People's Republic of China on the 2025 National Economic and Social Development." Preliminary calculations indicate that the annual gross domestic product (GDP) grew by 5.0% compared to the previous year, while the gross national income increased by 5.1%. Sheng Laiyun, Deputy Director of the National Bureau of Statistics, provided commentary on the communiqué.
Sheng Laiyun pointed out that 2025 marks the concluding year of the 14th Five-Year Plan and is a year of significant importance in the process of Chinese modernization. The newly released communiqué presents a comprehensive overview of China's economy, showcasing its stable foundation, progressive momentum, and resilient characteristics through authoritative and detailed data. Notably, Sheng emphasized three "first-time" achievements while interpreting the report: the economic aggregate exceeded 140 trillion yuan for the first time, research and development (R&D) expenditure surpassed the average level of OECD countries for the first time, and the total value of goods imports and exports broke through 45 trillion yuan for the first time.
**Economic Aggregate Exceeds 140 Trillion Yuan for the First Time** Regarding China's overall economic performance in 2025, Sheng Laiyun stated that the Chinese economy has "overcome difficulties to promote development, with comprehensive national strength reaching a new level." He described the past year as one marked by multiple intersecting pressures, yet also one of substantial achievements. This is mainly reflected in three aspects: - **New Milestone in Economic Aggregate**: In 2025, China's GDP grew by 5.0% year-on-year, with the economic aggregate surpassing 140 trillion yuan for the first time, successfully meeting the expected targets. During the 14th Five-Year Plan period, the economy consecutively crossed the thresholds of 110 trillion, 120 trillion, 130 trillion, and 140 trillion yuan. As China's economic scale continues to expand, a 5% growth rate corresponds to an economic increment of over 5 trillion yuan. - **Progress in Per Capita Development Levels**: In 2025, China's per capita GDP reached 99,665 yuan, an increase of 5.1% year-on-year, equivalent to $13,953 based on the annual average exchange rate, maintaining a level above $13,000 for the third consecutive year. Meanwhile, per capita indicators reflecting production efficiency and national quality have also improved. The overall labor productivity rose by 6.1%, outpacing economic growth by 1.1 percentage points. The average years of education for the population aged 16–59 increased by 0.1 years. - **Enhanced International Influence**: Globally, China's 5% economic growth rate ranks among the top of major economies. Its contribution to global economic growth is estimated to remain around 30%, continuing to be the largest contributor and a key stabilizer for world economic growth. China firmly maintains its position as the world's second-largest economy, accounting for approximately one-sixth of the global economic aggregate. In 2025, China's goods imports reached 18.5 trillion yuan, making it the world's second-largest import market for the 17th consecutive year. The total value of service trade exceeded 8 trillion yuan, setting a new record. The number of newly established foreign-invested enterprises grew by 19.1%, and non-financial outward direct investment surpassed 1 trillion yuan.
**R&D Expenditure Surpasses OECD Average for the First Time** Sheng Laiyun further noted that in 2025, China's economy advanced in quality and gained momentum through innovation, with accelerated construction of a modern industrial system. - **From the Perspective of Hard Technology**: In 2025, national R&D expenditure increased by 8.1% year-on-year, accounting for 2.80% of GDP, exceeding the OECD average for the first time. Within this, the proportion of basic research funding reached 7.08%. By the end of the year, the number of high-value invention patents per 10,000 population increased to 16. - **From the Perspective of Industrial Development**: In 2025, the value-added of high-tech manufacturing industries above the designated size grew by 9.4% year-on-year, accounting for 17.1% of the total value-added of industrial enterprises above the designated size. Among large-scale service enterprises, the operating revenue of strategic emerging services and high-tech services increased by 9.3% and 7.9%, respectively. - Additionally, digital empowerment continued to strengthen. The value-added of digital product manufacturing above the designated size rose by 9.3% year-on-year, while the value-added of information transmission, software, and information technology services increased by 11.1%. The output of intelligent products such as industrial control computers and systems, CNC metal-cutting machine tools, and 5G smartphones grew by 86.5%, 13.7%, and 12.5%, respectively. New consumption models like live-streaming e-commerce and instant retail developed rapidly, with annual online retail sales nearing 16 trillion yuan, an increase of 8.6%.
The modern infrastructure system also saw accelerated improvements. In 2025, the output of mobile communication base station equipment grew by 13.5% year-on-year. By year-end, the number of 5G base stations reached 4.84 million, and internet penetration rose to 80.1%. The completion rate of the main framework of the National Comprehensive Three-dimensional Transportation Network exceeded 90%, with the world's largest and most modern high-speed railway network continuing to expand.
**Total Value of Goods Imports and Exports Breaks Through 45 Trillion Yuan for the First Time** Building a new pattern of development is a major strategic task related to the overall development of China and an inevitable choice in response to global economic and trade changes. Sheng Laiyun indicated that over the past year, the domestic cycle has solidified its dominant role. - In 2025, the total retail sales of consumer goods exceeded 50 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 3.7%, maintaining China's position as the world's second-largest consumer market. Domestic demand contributed 67.3% to economic growth, with final consumption expenditure accounting for 52.0% of that, an increase of 5.0 percentage points from the previous year. - The development of a unified national market progressed steadily, and the logistics system was upgraded. The flow and allocation of various goods and factors became smoother and more efficient. In 2025, the volume of freight transport and freight turnover increased by 3.2% and 4.6% year-on-year, respectively. The ratio of total social logistics costs to GDP dropped to 13.9%. - Against the backdrop of rapid development in network communication and the accelerated substitution of electronic correspondence, postal mail service volume declined. However, the industry structure upgraded quickly, with express delivery business volume exceeding 190 billion pieces, driving an 11.8% growth in the total volume of postal and delivery services. - Capital investment increased, and the capital market was relatively active. The broad money supply (M2) balance at the end of the year grew by 8.5% compared to the end of the previous year. Throughout the year, A-share financing on the Shanghai and Shenzhen stock exchanges increased by 833.2 billion yuan.
In 2025, domestic and international cycles mutually reinforced each other. The total value of goods imports and exports broke through 45 trillion yuan for the first time, a year-on-year increase of 3.8%, positioning China to lead globally for the ninth consecutive year and serving as a "key link" in stabilizing global industrial and supply chains. Service trade expanded steadily with an optimized structure; the total value of service imports and exports grew by 7.4%, with exports of knowledge-intensive services and travel services increasing by 10.5% and 49.5%, respectively. Foreign trade diversification continued to expand, with the proportion of imports and exports to Belt and Road partner countries rising to 51.9% of the total. China signed 24 free trade agreements with 31 countries and regions. The expansion of visa-free transit policies and the optimization of tax refund policies for overseas visitors led to a nearly 50% increase in the number of foreign entries via visa-free channels and a near doubling of sales from tax-refundable goods for departing tourists. The Hainan Free Trade Port commenced full-island customs closure operations, enhancing the role of high-level open platforms.
**Average Daily Newly Established Enterprises Rises to 26,000** In his commentary, Sheng Laiyun also emphasized that high-quality development is the primary task in fully building a modern socialist country. - The development of a unified national market advanced deeply, with the issuance of guidelines for its construction and the release of the 2025 version of the market access negative list, which was reduced to 106 items. - The Private Economy Promotion Law was enacted and implemented, continuously optimizing the business environment. The average number of newly established enterprises per day increased to 26,000 for the year. The value-added of industrial enterprises above the designated size that are specialized, refined, distinctive, and innovative ("Little Giant" firms) grew by 9%. - A series of policies and measures were introduced to resolve structural contradictions in key industries and promote quality upgrading, with visible results in curbing "involution-style" competition. - Reforms in key areas such as fiscal, tax, and financial sectors were coordinated. Throughout the year, tax cuts, fee reductions, and rebates under major policies supporting technological innovation and manufacturing development amounted to 2.9 trillion yuan. The weighted average interest rate for newly issued enterprise loans decreased by 41 basis points compared to the previous year. - New urbanization construction continued, with the urbanization rate of the permanent population reaching 67.89% at year-end, an increase of 0.89 percentage points from the end of the previous year. - In 2025, the per capita disposable income of rural residents in formerly impoverished counties increased by 6.5% in real terms. The ratio of per capita disposable income between urban and rural residents narrowed to 2.31. By year-end, internet penetration in rural areas rose to 69.5%. - Regional coordinated development deepened, with a more optimized regional economic layout. The economic growth rates of the central and western regions were 0.2 and 0.1 percentage points higher than that of the eastern region, respectively. The leading role of the three major growth poles—the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, the Yangtze River Delta, and the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area—was consolidated and enhanced.
Furthermore, the new energy system accelerated its development. The share of clean energy consumption in total energy consumption rose to 30.4%. Significant achievements were made in energy conservation and carbon reduction: energy consumption per 10,000 yuan of GDP (excluding raw material use and non-fossil energy consumption) decreased by 5.1% year-on-year, and carbon dioxide emissions per 10,000 yuan of GDP fell by 5.0%. Green productivity was rapidly developed, with annual production and sales of new energy vehicles both exceeding 16 million units, maintaining the top global position for the 11th consecutive year. The output of green products such as charging piles and solar cells grew rapidly. Ecological protection strengthened, resulting in clearer waters and bluer skies. Among 3,641 national surface water assessment sections, the proportion with excellent water quality remained above 90% for the second consecutive year. Among 339 prefecture-level cities and above, over 70% met air quality standards. The red line of 1.8 billion mu of farmland was strictly maintained, and the construction of high-standard farmland continued. Total grain output remained stable above 1.4 trillion jin for the second consecutive year. The new energy security strategy was implemented to high standards, ensuring a more robust energy supply. In 2025, raw coal output increased to 4.85 billion tons, crude oil production remained stable above 200 million tons for the fourth consecutive year, and natural gas output increased by over 10 billion cubic meters for the ninth consecutive year. The value-added of equipment manufacturing above the designated size accounted for 36.8% of the total value-added of industrial enterprises above the designated size. The number of deaths from various production safety accidents decreased by 7% year-on-year.
**12.67 Million New Urban Jobs Created** Sheng Laiyun stated that over the past year, China has always placed the protection and improvement of people's livelihoods in a prominent position. A series of policies benefiting the people were launched in key areas such as employment, education, healthcare, elderly care, and child rearing, promoting the prosperous development of social undertakings. Livelihood construction became fairer, more balanced, inclusive, and accessible, continuously enhancing the people's sense of happiness, gain, and security. - In 2025, the national average surveyed urban unemployment rate was 5.2%, below the expected control target of around 5.5%. A total of 12.67 million new urban jobs were created. - Stable economic growth and employment conditions led to a 5.0% real increase in per capita disposable income, keeping pace with economic growth. - The quality of life for residents continued to improve, with service consumption expenditure accounting for 46.1% of per capita consumption expenditure. - Education developed steadily, with the consolidation rate of nine-year compulsory education and the gross enrollment rate for senior secondary education reaching 96.1% and 92.0%, respectively. - The healthcare service system improved continuously. By year-end, the number of beds in national medical and health institutions reached 10.09 million, and the number of health technical personnel reached 13.4 million. - Cultural undertakings and the cultural industry flourished, with public cultural services becoming more accessible. By year-end, there were 3,253 public libraries and 3,517 cultural centers nationwide. - The per capita sports area reached 3.1 square meters by the end of 2025. - Social insurance coverage expanded. By the end of 2025, the number of people covered by basic pension insurance and basic medical insurance reached 1.08 billion and 1.33 billion, respectively. Approximately 5.95 million and 33.4 million people received urban and rural subsistence allowances, respectively. - Social services improved continuously. By year-end, there were 42,000 civil affairs institutions providing accommodation. Throughout the year, 1.21 million units (rooms) of government-sold affordable housing, affordable rental housing, and public rental housing were constructed or collected.
Sheng Laiyun emphasized that in 2025, China's economic ship navigated through waves. Looking ahead to the new journey, as the 15th Five-Year Plan begins, Chinese modernization will demonstrate even brighter prospects.
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