Journalists raise hands to ask questions at a press conference for the fourth session of the 14th National People's Congress (NPC) on economy in Beijing, on March 6, 2026. Photo: Xinhua

China's GDP is expected to grow by over 6 trillion yuan ($869.6 billion) in 2026, equivalent to the total annual GDP volume of a developed economy, Zheng Shanjie, head of the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), the country's top economic planner, told a press conference on the sidelines of the fourth session of the 14th National People's Congress in Beijing on Friday.

A day after China unveiled its economic growth target of 4.5-5 percent this year, five Chinese government agencies including the NDRC, Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM), People's Bank of China, and China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) held an economy-themed conference.

During the two-and-a-half-hour conference, five officials took 17 questions, with topics such as how China will boost domestic demand, promote sci-tech innovation, expand high-level opening-up, and foster the healthy development of foreign trade in 2026 receiving high attention. 

Solid foundation

China's economic growth target is prudently proposed by the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and the State Council after comprehensive assessment, systematic analysis, and scientific demonstration, Zheng said, in response to a question from a foreign media outlet over how China will achieve its pre-set GDP growth target in 2026.

"To achieve this target, we have a solid foundation, which can be reflected in at least three aspects - namely aggregate scale, innovation capacity, and risk response," the official said.

As for the topic of technological innovation, which drew a great deal of attention at the conference, Zheng said China's six emerging pillar industries are expected to surpass 10 trillion yuan in total value in 2030.

Furthermore, in order to step up support for innovation, the country will establish a national-level mergers and acquisitions (M&A) fund this year to further smoothen exit channels for venture capital investment and improve capital turnover efficiency, which is expected to guide and leverage more than 1 trillion yuan of investment from various sources, the official said.

Equally important are questions about stimulating the potential of China's consumption - a frequently mentioned phrase during the press conference. Commerce Minister Wang Wentao said that measured by purchasing power parity, the scale of China's consumer market topped the world during the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-25).

"MOFCOM will adhere to combining benefiting people's livelihoods with promoting consumption, uphold the 'policy+activity' dual-wheel drive, deepen the implementation of the special campaign to boost consumption, and spare no effort to promote consumption and expand domestic demand," Wang said, highlighting measures including extending the consumer goods trade-in program, expanding service consumption opening-up, and sparking the vitality of lower-tier markets.

The scale of new government bonds this year has reached 11.89 trillion yuan, Finance Minister Lan Fo'an told the press conference, representing the most significant fiscal effort in recent years, enabling the country to boost domestic demand, stabilize growth and drive transformation.

At the conference, a Bloomberg reporter paid attention to the mention of "keeping the volume of foreign trade stable and refining its mix" outlined in the Government Work Report submitted Thursday to the country's top legislature for deliberation.

Comparing exports and imports to two wheels of a vehicle, Wang said the more balanced the two wheels are, the more stable the vehicle will be and the further it will go, stressing that the country will promote balanced development of foreign trade - expanding imports while stabilizing exports.

"We all know that markets are the scarcest resource in the world today. Some countries treat the market as a weapon or a bargaining chip and pursue protectionism. As a responsible major country, China proactively opens its ultra-large market, regarding it as an opportunity and a platform for cooperation," Wang said.

Positive resonance

The press conference centers on three major directions - expanding domestic demand, expanding high-level opening-up, and technological innovation - all serving the core goal of high-quality economic development, laying the foundation for the start of the 15th Five-Year Plan period (2026-30), Hu Qimu, a deputy secretary-general of the Forum 50 for Digital-Real Economies Integration, told the Global Times on Friday.

On the one hand, expanding domestic effective demand will help boost the total economic scale and hedge external impacts with domestic consumption. On the other hand, the development of new quality productive forces, institutional opening-up and capital market reform will help adjust economic structure, cultivate new drivers and enhance economic resilience, Hu said.

The information-packed press conference also resonated positively among some foreign journalists on site. "I'm very happy to be here with this great government to see the successful events and successful investments for the humanity. Thank China who brings many solutions for the world," Hedi Harizi, a reporter from Tunisia, told the Global Times after the press conference.

"China's 15th Five-Year Plan shows the unique strength of the world's second largest economy in long-term planning. By carefully mapping out multi-year strategies, China not only supports its own economic growth but also provides stability and predictability for the global economy," Simon Lichtenberg, founder of Trayton Group in Shanghai and All China Founding Chairman of the Danish Chamber of Commerce in China, told the Global Times on Friday.

John Quelch, executive vice chancellor and distinguished professor of social science at Duke Kunshan University, spoke highly of China's measures to broaden market access for foreign investment, particularly in services and financial sectors.

"In an era when protectionist tendencies have emerged in some parts of the world, China's continued emphasis on opening-up sends an important signal in support of international trade, investment, and economic cooperation. China's continued commitment to innovation and opening-up has the potential to make several contributions to the global economy," Quelch told the Global Times on Friday in a written interview.