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China is working on an action plan to expand domestic market demand during 2026-2030, a senior official with the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), the nation’s top economic planner, said at a monthly press conference on Tuesday.

The aspirations of China’s 1.4 billion people for a better life and the continuous industrial upgrading unlock enormous domestic demand. The NDRC is therefore formulating an action plan to boost domestic market demand and will accelerate its roll-out, Zuo Gang, an official with the NDRC said.

Zuo said that domestic demand has served as the primary engine and stabilizer of economic growth. It contributed 74.8 percent of China’s GDP growth in the first three quarters of this year.

On the consumption front, total retail sales of goods and services rose 2.6 percent year-on-year, with service sales up 5 percent. New consumption scenarios and business models keep emerging. Experience-based consumption, experience-driven spending and event economy have become new growth drivers, better meeting diversified consumer demands, Zuo said.

Investment has seen improved structure. Investment in intellectual property products climbed 9.3 percent, high-tech industry investment rose 4.9 percent, and equipment investment grew 9.7 percent. 

The official said China will push forward three major tasks. It will boost consumption by stabilizing employment and household income, upgrading purchases of new-energy vehicles and smart products, expanding supply of elderly care, childcare, cultural, tourism and sports services, and scrapping unreasonable consumption restrictions. Inbound consumption will also be further expanded.

China will advance effective investment by coordinating major projects under the 15th Five-Year Plan (2026-30) and the "Six Networks" initiative. Funds from ultra-long-term special treasury bonds and policy financial instruments will be channeled to improve people’s livelihood, sci-tech innovation, industrial upgrading and security resilience. Mechanisms will be refined for private firms to participate in major projects.

Efforts will also be made to introduce regulations for developing a unified national market and reduce circulation costs to smooth the circulation of supply and demand.

The press conference was held one day after China released its economic data for the third quarter. China’s GDP grew 4.5 percent in the third quarter, up 0.2 percentage points from the second quarter. 

China will boost the effectiveness of existing policies to advance major infrastructure projects, attract private investment and upgrade water and grain storage facilities. It will swiftly carry out new supportive measures such as pledged supplemental lending rate cuts and housing loan subsidies, and stand ready to introduce more measures to keep the economy stable, Chinese officials said.

Global Times