The Chinese economy has made steady progress despite pressure (Ruicai)
The National Development and Reform Commission recently held a press conference, during which Li Chao, Deputy Director and spokesperson of the Policy Research Office of the National Development and Reform Commission, introduced that in the first three quarters, the Chinese economy has withstood pressure, made steady progress, provided solid and effective livelihood security, and continued to expand effective investment, laying a solid foundation for achieving the annual economic and social development goals.
Overall presenting five characteristics
In the first three quarters, the overall operation of the Chinese economy showed five characteristics:
One is stable operation. In the first three quarters, the gross domestic product (GDP) grew by 5.2% year-on-year, continuing to rank among the top economies in the world. From the perspective of demand, the total retail sales of consumer goods in society increased by 4.5% year-on-year, with a growth rate 1.2 percentage points faster than the same period last year. From a supply perspective, the added value of industries above designated size increased by 6.2%, setting a new high for the same period since 2022.
The second is sufficient kinetic energy. From the data of the first three quarters, the added value of equipment manufacturing industry and high-tech manufacturing industry increased by 9.7% and 9.6% respectively, accounting for 35.9% and 16.7% of the proportion of industries above designated size, an increase of 2.1 and 0.8 percentage points compared to the same period last year; The added value of integrated circuit manufacturing and intelligent device manufacturing increased by 22.4% and 12.2% respectively.
The third is the improvement of quality and efficiency. The effectiveness of governing disorderly competition has gradually emerged, and indicators such as key product prices and enterprise efficiency have improved. The prices of polycrystalline silicon, silicon wafers, lithium carbonate and other products have significantly rebounded; In the first three quarters, the profits of industrial enterprises above designated size increased by 3.2% year-on-year, and in September, they increased by 21.6% year-on-year.
Fourthly, it has sufficient resilience. Faced with drastic changes in the external environment, the export of goods maintained a growth rate of 7.1% in the first three quarters; The export product structure has been further optimized, with the export growth rates of high-tech products and electromechanical products reaching 11.9% and 9.6% respectively in the first three quarters. Many domestic "trendy products" have become global "bestsellers"; The export layout was more diversified, and the export to countries jointly building the "the Belt and Road" increased by 12.4%.
Five has great potential. In terms of consumption, popular sports events, concerts, and other events have led to a 5.2% increase in service retail sales. In terms of industrial structure, there is a strong trend towards high-end, green, and intelligent development. The production of civilian drones and industrial robots has increased by 43.2% and 29.8% respectively, while the production of new energy vehicles and lithium-ion power batteries for automobiles has increased by 29.7% and 46.9% respectively.
Solid and effective guarantee of livelihood and supply
While maintaining steady economic growth, the work of ensuring people's livelihoods has also been solidly promoted, especially in the areas of food production and energy supply, where significant achievements have been made.
Let's first look at stable grain production. The National Development and Reform Commission closely tracks and assesses changes in the situation, and supports local governments in actively responding to disaster situations; At the same time, we will ensure smooth channels for purchasing, collecting, and storing grain, effectively stabilize the grain market, and strive to minimize the impact of disasters on grain production and farmers' income. After efforts, summer grain production has been stable and abundant, early rice production has increased, and autumn grain production has a good foundation and is gradually being harvested. It is expected to have another bumper harvest of grain throughout the year.
It is reported that in recent years, the National Development and Reform Commission, together with relevant departments, has deeply implemented the strategy of "storing grain in the ground and in technology", continuously strengthened the foundation of grain production, and enhanced disaster prevention and mitigation capabilities. Since 2024, a total of over 400 billion yuan of central funds, including "double" funds, have been allocated to support the construction and renovation of 180 million mu of high standard farmland; Allocate over 20 billion yuan of central funds to support the construction and renovation projects of irrigation areas. The relevant projects have significantly improved the agricultural production conditions in the major grain producing areas.
Let's take another look at the heating reserve. In order to prepare for this year's peak winter season, the National Development and Reform Commission and relevant parties have started by focusing on key aspects such as energy supply, resource reserves, and emergency dispatch, laying a solid foundation for ensuring energy supply during this year's heating season. As of October 27th, there are 220 million tons of coal stored in power plants nationwide, which can be used for more than 35 days; The underground gas storage facility has completed its annual gas injection task and achieved full storage for winter.
During the heating season, we will adhere to daily scheduling and weekly consultations, consolidate the main responsibility of local and enterprise supply guarantee, and timely coordinate and resolve supply-demand contradictions, "said Li Chao
Actively expanding effective investment
Expanding effective investment is a key measure to stabilize growth.
Li Chao introduced that the National Development and Reform Commission is accelerating the implementation of expanding effective investment policies. Recently, 500 billion yuan has been allocated in the local government debt balance limit to supplement the comprehensive financial resources of local governments and expand effective investment. Among them, a special bond quota of 200 billion yuan has been added, specifically to support investment and construction in some provinces.
As of now, with the joint efforts of all parties, the 500 billion yuan fund has been fully invested, supporting more than 2300 projects with a total investment of about 7 trillion yuan, focusing on urban renewal fields such as digital economy, artificial intelligence, consumer infrastructure, transportation, energy, and underground pipeline construction and renovation.
This new policy based financial instrument has increased its support for major economic provinces, while also supporting a number of eligible private investment projects in important industries and key areas. Li Chao stated that the National Development and Reform Commission will work with relevant departments to urge local governments and central enterprises to accelerate the construction of projects, form more physical workloads as soon as possible, actively expand effective investment, and promote high-quality development.
The results of the first three quarters have laid a solid foundation for successfully completing the annual target tasks. Recently, some international economic organizations have raised their expectations for China's economic growth rate. For example, the latest forecasts from the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank in October have significantly increased China's economic growth rate by 0.8 percentage points in 2025 compared to the April forecast.
With the continuous implementation and effectiveness of various policies, we are confident and capable of achieving the annual economic and social development goals and tasks, "said Li Chao.