Development-focused China brings confidence to uncertain world

2025.10.21

A view of the Lujiazui area in Shanghai Photo: VCG
The 20th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) started its fourth plenary session in Beijing on Monday morning. The meeting will deliberate on the Party leadership's draft proposals for the formulation of the 15th Five-Year Plan (2026-2030) for national economic and social development. On the same day, China's National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) released data showing that China's gross domestic product (GDP) grew 5.2 percent year-on-year in the first three quarters of 2025, accelerating by 0.2 and 0.4 percentage points compared with the growth rates for the full year and the same period of last year, respectively. These two events coincide in timing and echo each other in meaning - one is a strategic blueprint for the next five years, the other a concrete testament to the resilience of China's economy.
Looking across the global economic landscape, 5.2 percent stands out as a particularly valuable highlight. With rising protectionism, supply chain restructuring, and frequent regional conflicts… external "headwinds" have been stronger than expected. However, China's economy continues to grow steadily is no easy feat. It not only contributes one of the most important sources of stable growth to the global economy but also reinforces confidence in China's own development path. More importantly, it reflects a form of structural resilience - while external environments may bring temporary fluctuations, the long-term trajectory of China's economy continues to be shaped by structural optimization, effective policy adjustment, and institutional advantages.
Since the beginning of this year, China's economy has maintained steady progress, with the integration of scientific innovation and industrial transformation accelerating. New quality productive forces are emerging as the core drivers of high-quality development. In the first three quarters, the value added of high-tech manufacturing increased by 9.6 percent year-on-year. The share of industrial enterprises above designated size rose to 16.7 percent, while the proportion of the equipment manufacturing industry increased to 35.9 percent, becoming the main engine of industrial growth. The digital economy and green industries have also performed strongly: production and sales of new energy vehicles, photovoltaic products, energy storage, and wind power have all remained robust, with exports of the "new three" products maintaining double-digit growth. Innovation in science and technology continues to accelerate, with R&D investment increasing nationwide and the number of patents rising rapidly.
During the 14th Five-Year Plan period, China's economy has advanced steadily through storms and challenges. From the impact of the pandemic to abrupt changes in the external environment, China has withstood unprecedented pressure. Its total economic output has successively surpassed 110 trillion yuan, 120 trillion yuan, and 130 trillion yuan, while its contribution to global economic growth has remained around 30 percent. Major breakthroughs have been achieved in scientific and technological innovation, green transformation has accelerated, and a modern industrial system is taking shape. Per capita GDP has exceeded $13,000 for two consecutive years, the income gap between urban and rural areas has continued to narrow, and the social security system has been further improved. China's economy is opening a new chapter amid changing circumstances, with the growth of new drivers shifting its development from "competing in speed" to "competing in quality," and from factor-driven growth to innovation-driven growth.
Behind these achievements lies a crucial underlying logic: China's unwavering commitment to development. Development is the Party's foremost priority in governing and rejuvenating the nation, and it is the intrinsic requirement of Chinese modernization. China's development aims to enable over a billion people to lead better lives, and is driven by innovation, coordination, greenness, openness and sharing. It is this commitment that has enabled China to maintain its course through challenging conditions. China's development philosophy is now providing valuable insights to the global community. 
In the face of a growing global "development deficit," China has consistently advocated for inclusiveness, universality, and common development, advancing practical initiatives such as the Belt and Road Initiative and the Global Development Initiative to enable more countries to access development opportunities. While pursuing its own modernization, China is also contributing wisdom and solutions to tackle humanity's development challenges, thereby making the value of development a common language that connects China with the world.
As China stands at the juncture of unveiling its 15th Five-Year Plan, the significance of its focus on development is being further manifested. The Five-Year Plan serves not only as a timetable for economic operations but also as a strategic blueprint for national development. It will continue to prioritize high-quality development, position self-reliance and strength in science and technology as the strategic support for national development, and take green transformation, regional coordination, urban-rural integration and common prosperity as key directions, to accelerate the transformation and optimization of the development mode while enhancing the impetus and vitality of development. Consequently, a more innovative, resilient and inclusive China will continue to deliver certainty - not only advancing its own modernization journey but also injecting stability and confidence into a turbulent world.
Over the next five years, we must make innovation the primary driver of development and continuously strengthen new quality productive forces; we must invigorate domestic demand and invigorate the market, transforming consumption potential into growth momentum; we will advance the green transformation, making clean energy and low-carbon lifestyles new drivers of growth; and we will continue to expand high-level opening-up, attracting more cooperation and opportunities with a more open posture. No matter how the external environment fluctuates, the Chinese economy remains confident, capable, and resourceful. As long as we steadfastly follow our path and turn our blueprint into reality step by step, China's development juggernaut will surely forge ahead amid the global storms and waves toward a brighter future.
Source: Global Times