A worker operates in the production workshop of China Construction Equipment & Engineering Co in Nanjing of East China's Jiangsu Province on January 19, 2026. Photo: VCG

China's GDP grew at 5 percent year-on-year to 140.19 trillion yuan ($20.13 trillion) in 2025, data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showed on Monday, meeting the annual growth target of around 5 percent and surpassing the 140-trillion-yuan threshold for the first time. 

Observers said the upbeat data underscored the resilience and vitality of the world's second-largest economy despite multiple downward pressures. They added that such growth momentum will continue to position China as a beacon of stability and the locomotive of the world economy. 

While the data represents a resounding success to the conclusion of China's 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25) period, it also lays a solid foundation for a head start this year - also the opening year of China's 15th Five-Year Plan (2026-30), analysts said, noting that China's economic strength will give the country and the global community greater confidence to navigate an increasingly complex, volatile geopolitical environment and rising waves of trade protectionism in the years to come. 

The economy in the 14th Five-Year Plan period was marked by four consecutive leaps - surpassing 110 trillion yuan, 120 trillion yuan, 130 trillion yuan, and 140 trillion yuan, Kang Yi, head of NBS, said at a press briefing of the State Council Information Office on Monday on the release of the economic data for 2025.

The economy expanded 4.5 percent year-on-year in the fourth quarter last year, data from the NBS showed, easing from 4.8 percent in the third quarter, following 5.2 percent in the second quarter and 5.4 percent in the first quarter.   

When asked to comment on China's economic performance last year, Kang used four keywords: "stable, progressive, innovative, and resilient." 

"China's economy has continued to demonstrate strong resilience, navigating instability while achieving both quantitative leaps and qualitative improvements," said Kang, noting that the country is projected to contribute around 30 percent to global economic growth, serving as a stabilizer for world supply chains.

Yao Jingyuan, a special researcher of the Counselor's  Office of the State Council, told the Global Times on Monday that achieving 5-percent GDP growth and crossing the output milestone of 140 trillion yuan marks the successful completion of the goals listed in the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25). Meanwhile, the robust figures have laid a crucial foundation for a strong start to the 15th Five-Year Plan (2026-30) and for resolutely marching toward China's second centenary goal. 

'Unprecedented' challenges

Based on the Global Times' calculation, the 5-percent increase in China's GDP also translates to a net growth of 5.38 trillion yuan ($771.73 billion) in economic volume last year, which is more than the entire GDP of Belgium of $671.37 billion in 2024 by World Bank metric. 

Yao said the transcript is by no means easy, as 2025 was an "extraordinary year" during which the internal and external challenges facing the Chinese economy were unprecedented in both scale and intensity.

"Externally, trade protectionism has been on the rise, and de-globalization trends have reemerged. In particular, there have been renewed attempts to contain and suppress China's development, with the US wielding the tariff stick once again. Internally, China has been dealing with pressures from insufficient demand, an imbalance between supply and demand, as well as the pains associated with economic transformation and upgrading," Yao said. 

The resilient economic fundamentals, which vividly demonstrated throughout last year's development trajectory,  will provide greater policy maneuver and inspire stronger confidence for a robust start in implementing the 15th Five-Year Plan (2026-2030) in 2026, analysts said.

Tian Yun, a Beijing-based economist, told the Global Times on Monday that the standout developments in new growth drivers last year closely align with the priorities of the 15th Five-Year Plan (2026-30), which places strong emphasis on achieving greater self-reliance and strength in science and technology and steering the development of new quality productive forces.

"So, 2025 served as a critical bridge in deepening this strategic layout," he added.
In the next five years, China is expected to play a greater and more indispensable global role in the face of fragmented global supply chain, intensifying global tech race and rising geopolitical tensions, analysts noted. 

"The resilient and stable growth logged by the Chinese economy has provided a crucial safeguard for the sustainable development of the world economy. On the other hand, China stands today as the world's most stable supply chain base and the primary production hub for industrial goods. And this position will become more evident in the years to come," Tian said.

According to Yao, China's 5-percent growth rate clearly places the country at the forefront among the world's major economies. An IMF report released on Monday forecasted that global growth will hover around 3.3 percent in 2025. 

The economic expansion of the world's second-largest economy has also caught the limelight of global mainstream media outlets. A Guardian article cited an economist as saying that "navigating a fraught geopolitical landscape remained a 'major wildcard,' but that China's economy should continue to grow through 2026." The Associated Press said in a report that China's economy expanded at a 5 percent annual pace in 2025, buoyed by strong exports despite US tariffs.

Economic highlights

In 2025, China's value-added industrial output rose by 5.9 percent compared to the same period in 2024, while fixed-asset investment declined by 3.8 percent year-on-year, NBS data showed. China's retail sales of consumer goods jumped 3.7 percent year-on-year last year.

Hu Qimu, deputy secretary-general of Forum 50 for Digital-Real Economies Integration, highlighted the development of such industries as high-tech and advanced manufacturing, which shows that the development of China's new quality productive forces has been gearing up and become a prominent driver of the economy in 2025.
Last year, the value added of high-tech manufacturing grew by 9.4 percent year-on-year, outpacing overall growth rate by 3.5 percentage points. The output of industrial robots increased by 28 percent, and new energy vehicles rose by 25.1 percent, data from NBS showed. 

In the fourth quarter, China's growth in retail sales also stabilized, boosted by a slew of measures that stimulated consumer demand as well as the vibrant spending during the eight-day National Day and Mid-Autumn Festival holidays, analysts said. 

Tian pointed out that the consumer demand has gotten off a good start this year, with notable release of consumer demands during the New Year's Day holidays, and is expected to continue rising steadily through the upcoming Spring Festival holidays.

Since the beginning of 2026, Chinese authorities have released a bunch of initiatives that aim at spurring consumption and expanding domestic demand, which analysts believe are set to "create favorable conditions for a promising start" in 2026.

"Those are clear signals delivered to the market that the Chinese government will act proactively and front-load its efforts. It is forecasted that more targeted measures will be followed to address persisting economic challenges, which will all help to bolster market confidence and enhance overall social expectation this year," Hu said. 

A number of economists and global financial institutions are confident on China's economic prospects.

The IMF report released on Monday has revised the growth forecast for China upward by 0.3 percentage point to 4.5 percent, "reflecting the lower US effective tariff rates on Chinese goods as a result of the yearlong trade truce agreed to in November and stimulus measures that are assumed to be implemented over two years."

Chinese economy is projected by Goldman Sachs Research to grow by 4.8 percent in 2026 as exports increase and the downward pressure from a slowing property market lessens, according to a report the US investment bank released on its website. 

The country is expected to set its growth target in March at the annual "two sessions."