A 5G four-legged intelligent inspection robot equipped with voiceprint and artificial intelligence technology inspects the main equipment of a substation with maintenance personnel in Chuzhou, East China's Anhui Province on September 15, 2025. Photo: VCG

Although the investment growth rate is slowing down, the investment structure is being optimized. This is reflected in the sustained growth of manufacturing investment, with the transformation and upgrade of traditional manufacturing being actively promoted, while emerging manufacturing is developing and expanding, Fu Linghui, spokesperson for the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said on Friday.

Fu made the remarks as the NBS released key economic indices in October. Data showed that in the first 10 months, the investment in fixed assets decreased by 1.7 percent year-on-year.

In response, Fu noted that the slowdown in investment growth is the result of multiple factors acting in concert. From the perspective of investment entities, the external environment is complex and severe with intense domestic market competition, leading to the decline in investment returns, and market operating entities are becoming more cautious in their investment decisions. This is manifested in weak corporate profitability and a slowdown in private investment, the spokesperson said.

In addition, real estate investment accounts for a relatively high proportion of overall investment, and the adjustments in the real estate industry have a relatively pronounced downward pull on investment growth. From January to October, real estate development investment declined by 14.7 percent year-on-year. Excluding real estate development investment, project investment grew by 1.7 percent, while the decline in real estate development investment dragged down the overall investment by 3 percentage points, Fu noted.

"Although the investment growth rate is slowing down, the investment structure is being optimized," Fu said. In the first 10 months, manufacturing investment grew 2.7 percent year-on-year, accounting for 25.6 percent of total investment, an increase of 1.1 percentage points from the same period last year. 

Investment in some high-end industries has intensified, and the integrated development of scientific and technological innovation and industrial innovation has driven faster growth in investment in certain high-tech industries. From January to October, investment in the aerospace vehicle and equipment manufacturing industry grew 19.7 percent year-on-year, while investment in the information services industry increased by 32.7 percent, according to Fu.

Investment related to green transformation also showed strong growth momentum. In the first 10 months, the combined investment in solar, wind, nuclear, and hydropower generation grew 10.4 percent year-on-year, said Fu.

"China's investment potential and room for growth remain enormous. We need an objective and comprehensive understanding of changes in investment growth rates — we cannot focus solely on the present but must view them through the lens of long-term development," Fu noted. 

China is still the world's largest developing country, and to achieve the level of a mid-level developed country in the future, its investment space will remain vast. From the perspective of industrial development, the country will strengthen the foundation of the real economy and promote the integrated development of scientific and technological innovation and industrial innovation, accelerating the cultivation and expansion of new quality productive forces and advancing the transformation and upgrade of traditional industries, and all require continuous increases in investment, Fu said. 

From the perspective of regional development, addressing issues of unbalanced and inadequate development, promoting coordinated urban-rural and regional development, and advancing urban renewal and comprehensive rural revitalization also necessitate sustained increases in investment. From the perspective of people's livelihood security, investments to "fill shortcomings" in areas such as education, healthcare, housing, and basic public services still need to be intensified, the NBS spokesperson added.

In the next stage, the country will anchor to the goal of high-quality development, continue optimizing the investment structure and continuously improve the investment environment, in a bid to further stimulate the vitality of private investment, promote the healthy development of investment, and better leverage the key role of investment in expanding domestic demand, optimizing supply, and benefiting people's livelihood, Fu noted.

Global Times