Understanding the Chinese economy in the first half of the year from four new data points

Half of the year since the beginning of the 15th Five Year Plan has passed. How was the Chinese economy in the first half of the year?

The vivid development landscape is a reflection, and there are answers in the heavy economic data. Industries such as electronic information, embodied intelligence, and commercial aerospace are full of new ideas, while cultural tourism, digital, green, and healthy consumption are thriving. From the historic breakthrough in installed power generation capacity to the explosive growth in daily keyword usage, from the accumulation of sales revenue from exchanging old for new consumer goods, to the accumulation of sand and sand in the import and export of goods, China's economy is steadily advancing and moving towards new and better.

General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized in his New Year's message for 2026, 'We must anchor our goals and tasks, strengthen our confidence, seize the opportunity, and solidly promote high-quality development.'. Standing in the mid year development picture, analyzing economic data, and perceiving the resilience and vitality of the Chinese economy can further strengthen our confidence and determination to do a good job in the economic work of the second half of the year.

The stability of development trend from the perspective of power generation installed capacity exceeding 4 billion kilowatts

On the coast of the South China Sea, green electric wind is rising. On June 22nd, Unit 9 of Longyuan Power's Hainan Dongfang Qiyuan Sea Breeze Field was successfully connected to the grid for power generation. After all wind farms are put into operation in August, they can provide an average of 1.6 billion kilowatt hours of clean electricity per year, meeting the annual electricity needs of 625000 households.

The land of Luxi has reached a critical breakthrough. The China Datang Shandong Yuncheng 630 ℃ National Power Demonstration Project has recently entered commercial operation, achieving a thermal efficiency breakthrough of 50% for the first time in the field of coal-fired power generation.

From south to north, from wind power to thermal power, each project marks the footsteps of the power industry's upward climb - as of the end of May, the cumulative installed capacity of power generation in China reached 4.01 billion kilowatts, a year-on-year increase of 11.0%, ranking first in the world in terms of scale.

It took 8 years to double from 1 billion kilowatts to 2 billion kilowatts; From 2 billion kilowatts to 3 billion kilowatts, it took 4 years and 4 months; Nowadays, China's cumulative installed power generation capacity has increased from 3 billion kilowatts to 4 billion kilowatts in just about 2 years.

The installation speed continues to accelerate, backed by the solid support of a complete industrial system.

From silicon materials, solar cells, inverters to complete machines, blades, and towers, China has the world's most complete new energy equipment industry chain, with about 80% of photovoltaic modules and 60% of wind power equipment produced in China. The accelerated construction of supporting capabilities such as ultra-high voltage transmission, pumped storage, and new energy storage will enable large-scale new installed capacity to be built, delivered, and consumed, "said Jiang Debin, Deputy Director of the Statistics and Intelligence Department of the China Electricity Council. China's complete industrial system is the key guarantee for the transformation of 4 billion kilowatts from drawings to reality.

The continuous acceleration of installation speed demonstrates the firm determination to ensure energy security.

In the first half of the year, the global energy market experienced severe fluctuations, while China's energy system withstood the impact, with an overall balance of supply and demand, demonstrating strong resilience.

Where does resilience come from? Persist in the development and reserve of fossil fuels, stabilize oil production, and increase natural gas supply; Persist in improving the supply of non fossil energy, promote the development of multiple energy sources such as wind, solar, water, and nuclear power, and focus on building a new type of power system; Persist in diversifying energy imports, strengthen mutually beneficial cooperation with key energy resource countries, and ensure energy security under open conditions... Always prioritize energy security, accelerate the construction of a new energy system, and continuously enhance energy security capabilities.

The stability of energy supply is a microcosm of the stability of the Chinese economy in the first half of the year.

Stable grain production. As of June 18th, the progress of summer wheat harvest in China has exceeded 96%. Overall, this year's summer grain production has withstood multiple rounds of heavy rainfall, and the yield situation is clear. A bumper harvest has become a certainty.

The industrial market remains stable. The world's largest diameter earth pressure balance shield tunneling machine for high-speed railway tunnels has been produced, and the first 550 MW F-class gas turbine project in China has been fully put into operation. In May, the added value of the equipment manufacturing industry above designated size increased by 9.5% year-on-year, contributing 78.4% to the overall growth of the industry above designated size. The role of "ballast stone" continues to be prominent.

The employment situation is stable. In May, the national urban survey unemployment rate was 5.1%, a decrease of 0.1 percentage points from the previous month, and the overall employment situation remained stable.

From energy to food, from industry to employment, the word 'stability' runs through the whole picture. By cultivating internal strength and strengthening oneself, the Chinese economy will move forward steadily without fear of wind and rain.

Looking at the new driving force of the industry from the daily average number of word element calls reaching hundreds of trillions

Lexicon, the smallest unit of information processing in a large model. Every question asked by a user to artificial intelligence (AI) and every piece of content generated by AI will generate a call to a morpheme.

Entering the chlor alkali workshop of Shandong Haihua Group, dozens of parameters such as vibration, temperature, and pressure of the chlorine gas compressor are captured in real-time by the intelligent agent and converted into a "dynamic health profile", greatly reducing the occurrence of "unplanned shutdowns". By accessing proprietary enterprise data and tens of thousands of professional knowledge documents, intelligent agents can real-time grasp indicators such as caustic soda production and average electricity consumption, helping to increase production and reduce energy consumption, "said Wei Daisen, Chairman of Inspur Digital Enterprise Technology Co., Ltd.

Personal developer Wu Ruimeng received a project to create a website for a door and window enterprise. He immediately thought of the "AI fitting" scenario and used a no code application development platform to directly present the screen effect on the product page. "I am not a product manager and do not understand marketing, but AI can help me improve my abilities. ”

Empowering thousands of industries and entering thousands of households, China's AI field has experienced explosive growth in the first half of this year. As of the end of May, the daily average usage of keywords in China has reached millions of billions, leading the world in scale.

At the beginning of 2024, the daily average usage of lexical elements in China was only 100 billion; By the end of 2025, it will soar to 100 trillion yuan; Since the beginning of this year, this indicator has continued to grow rapidly, reflecting the active development trend of China's intelligent economy. Huo Jinjie, President of International Data Corporation (IDC) China, predicts that by 2029, the size of China's generative AI market will approach $100 billion, and the compound annual growth rate from 2024 to 2029 is expected to reach 68%, making it one of the most active AI application markets in the world.

The accelerated transformation of old and new driving forces is a distinctive feature of the current economic operation. The continuous breakthrough in the use of lexical elements and the acceleration of AI empowerment demonstrate the new momentum of China's industry.

Advanced industrial structure. From January to May this year, the high-tech manufacturing industry contributed nearly 40% of industrial growth, and the equipment manufacturing industry contributed nearly 60% of industrial growth. The transformation towards high-end, intelligent, green, and integrated industries has achieved significant results.

Emerging industries are gaining momentum. In the first five months, investment in high-tech industries increased by 4.5% year-on-year, investment in integrated circuit manufacturing and lithium-ion battery manufacturing increased by 11% and 24.9% respectively, and investment in information services increased by 13.8%.

By promoting industrial innovation through technological innovation and accelerating the development of new quality productive forces, the new driving force of China's economic development is becoming increasingly strong.

Looking at the vitality of the consumer market from the sales revenue of over 1 trillion yuan from the trade in of consumer goods

At the Suning Yigou South Street store in Xining, Qinghai, citizen Li Jiancheng calculated the price of an 85 inch TV and a refrigerator, which was originally priced at over 10000 yuan, plus a trade in subsidy and multiple discounts from the manufacturer and store. The final price was less than 8000 yuan.

Thousands of miles away in Yixing, Jiangsu, consumer Guo Wei placed an order immediately after experiencing the new product at a mobile phone store. The old phone, which has been in use for 4 years, is discounted by 400 yuan, plus more than 400 yuan of national subsidies. The new phone, which was originally priced at 2800 yuan, only costs less than 2000 yuan. The process is simple and smooth, and everything can be completed in just a few minutes

Since the beginning of this year, the National Development and Reform Commission, the Ministry of Commerce and other departments have optimized and improved the policy of exchanging old for new consumer goods, implemented precise policies and refined services in various regions, focused on the needs of the masses, and continuously released policy dividends. As of June 20th, this year's sales of consumer goods through trade in exceeded 1 trillion yuan, benefiting 136 million people, and the ratio of subsidy funds to leverage increased from 1:7.8 in 2025 to 1:10.3.

Benefiting the people and enhancing their sense of gain. In response to residents' demand for new technologies, products, and scenarios, this year's policy has included smart glasses in the subsidy scope for the first time. Market data confirms the effectiveness: From January to May, the retail sales of wearable smart devices such as smart glasses increased by more than double year-on-year.

Improving quality and expanding capacity, the popularity of the consumer market is rising. In the field of home appliances, the focus is on six major categories of products through trade in programs, with a particular emphasis on subsidizing first level energy efficiency and first level water efficiency products. Under policy guidance, the potential of green and intelligent consumption is accelerating. From January to May, the retail sales of high energy efficiency household appliances in units above designated size increased by more than 30%, and green consumption has become an important engine for market growth. Driven by the policy of exchanging old cars for new ones, the penetration rate of China's new energy passenger vehicle market has been continuously increasing, reaching 61.4% in April and 62.9% in May this year, surpassing 60% for two consecutive months and setting a new historical high.

The trillion yuan scale of exchanging old for new consumer goods is a vivid portrayal of the vitality of China's super large market.

Looking at the whole country, new smart products such as smartwatches and smart glasses are widely popular, and sales have doubled; The daily average volume of express delivery services in China has reached over 550 million pieces, with efficient circulation of people, logistics, information flow, and capital flow; Tourism travel, cultural performances, and sports event consumption continue to heat up, and popular performance tickets have become the norm in seconds... From commodity consumption to service consumption, from green consumption to intelligent consumption, consumption scenarios continue to innovate and potential is constantly released, highlighting the fundamental role of economic development.

By making good use of the advantages of a super large market and fully stimulating consumer potential, the Chinese economy is constantly radiating new vitality and energy.

Exploring the Integration of Openness and Cooperation through the Historical Breaking of Over 1 Trillion RMB in Import and Export to Africa

As night falls in Shenzhen, Guangdong, trucks loaded with fresh fruits rush out, delivering sweet fruits from South Africa to supermarkets and fruit and vegetable markets around the world. The tariff has been reduced from 10% to 0, and the import cost of this batch of apples has been directly saved by nearly 20000 yuan, "sighed Luo Shengcong, General Manager of Shenzhen Jianchengye International Freight Forwarding Co., Ltd.

This year marks the 70th anniversary of the opening of diplomatic relations between China and Africa. Starting from May 1st, China will fully implement zero tariff measures for 53 African countries that have established diplomatic relations. Zero tariffs will attract more Chinese enterprises to set up factories in Africa, and local service teams such as recycling, skills training, and after-sales maintenance will also follow suit, forming an increasingly complete ecological chain. Wang Haiguang, Deputy General Manager of the Overseas Business Unit of Zhejiang Zhongzhe New Energy Co., Ltd., is very optimistic about the growth space of the African new energy market.

According to customs data, in the first five months of this year, China's imports and exports to African countries reached 1.14 trillion yuan, breaking through 1 trillion yuan for the first time in history, a year-on-year increase of 18.2%.

The new breakthrough in China Africa trade reflects China's solid footsteps in expanding high-level opening-up.

Tariffs are subtracted, while trade is added. As early as 2005, China began granting zero tariff treatment to some products from the least developed countries in Africa. Since then, the scope of tax items, the number of beneficiary countries, and supporting facilitation measures have been upgraded along the way. This year, China became the world's first major economy to implement unilateral and comprehensive zero tariffs on all African countries with diplomatic relations and all least developed countries with diplomatic relations. Every proactive expansion of the market has become an accelerator driving the growth of China Africa trade, and China has maintained its position as Africa's largest trading partner for 17 consecutive years.

Tariffs are used for 'subtraction', while integration is used for 'addition'. Zero tariffs will attract other trading partners, including China, to increase investment in Africa, bringing capital, technology, equipment, and management experience, forming a new model of industrial chain synergy of "production, processing, and re export to China".

The new breakthrough in China Africa trade is a footnote to the integration of China's economic openness and cooperation since the beginning of this year. Implementing zero tariff policies for 63 countries, signing 24 free trade agreements with 31 countries and regions, increasing the number of free trade zones to 23, holding regular events such as the Chain Expo, Import Expo, and "Export to China" series, and studying and releasing the "Action Plan for Utilizing Foreign Investment to Stabilize and Promote Excellence"... China continues to open up its market and share development opportunities with the world. From January to May, China's total import and export value of goods trade was 20.68 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 15.3%; 25297 foreign-invested enterprises were newly established nationwide, a year-on-year increase of 5.3%.

Integration leads to incremental growth, while openness leads to win-win outcomes. At a time of profound adjustment in the global economic and trade landscape, China is continuously injecting stable and determined open forces into the world.

The situation is stable, the momentum is new, the market is active, and it is open and inclusive. In the first year of the 15th Five Year Plan, China's high-quality economic development has been solidly promoted and the pace is strong.

"By the middle of this century, we will comprehensively build China into a modern socialist country and achieve the second centenary goal. Time waits for no one! History waits for no one!" With firm confidence and continuous efforts, we will pool the great power to promote Chinese path to modernization, and the great ship "China Renaissance" will surely cut waves and achieve stability!