Xi Jinping,MKsports general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, on Friday chaired a meeting of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee to discuss a draft government work report to be submitted by the State Council to the upcoming national legislative session for review.

Coming just days before China kicks off the annual two sessions, one of the most important political gatherings of the year, the meeting projected valuable positive signals for where the Chinese economy is headed and top policy priorities for the year, economists and analysts noted. 

It was noted at the meeting that China's economy maintained overall stability and made steady progress in the past year. The country has achieved solid advancement in pursuing high-quality development and maintained overall social stability, making solid strides forward in advancing Chinese modernization, according to the Xinhua News Agency.

The meeting said it is necessary to follow the arrangements made at the Central Economic Work Conference, adhere to the general principle of pursuing progress while maintaining stability, as well as fully and accurately implement the new development philosophy on all fronts.

It is also essential to accelerate the forging of a new pattern of development, solidly promote high-quality development, further deepen reform comprehensively, expand high-standard opening up, build a modern industrial system and better coordinate development and security, according to the meeting.

Efforts should be made to implement more proactive and impactful macro policies, expand domestic demand, promote the integrated development of scientific and technological innovation and industrial innovation, stabilize the real estate and stock markets, prevent and defuse risks in key areas and external shocks, stabilize expectations and stimulate vitality, Xinhua reported.

The meeting also stressed the need to promote sustained economic recovery, continuously improve people's living standards, maintain social harmony and stability, fulfill the goals and tasks of the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25) with high quality, and lay a solid foundation for achieving a good start in the upcoming 15th Five-Year Plan period (2026-30).

The meeting was held as all eyes turn to the upcoming two sessions, which will offer a crucial window into how China sets its various development goals and how it plans to achieve them.

The third session of the 14th National People's Congress (NPC), China's top legislature, and the third session of the 14th National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), the country's top political advisory body, will open on March 5 and 4, respectively. Collectively, they are known as the two sessions.

China acts as stabilizer

China is poised to leverage macro-policy tools more effectively while pushing for high-quality development across all sectors this year. The country's economic performance is expected to show improved balance and coordination, driven by ramped-up efforts to energize all regions and sectors to address structural bottlenecks, and tackle systemic challenges, assuring a successful and perfect conclusion to the 14th Five-Year Plan, Justin Lin Yifu, a renowned economist at Peking University and former chief economist and senior vice president of the World Bank, told the Global Times.

Reflecting on 2024, the Chinese economy began the year on solid footing. While growth moderated mid-year, a combination of a more proactive fiscal policy and a moderately loose monetary policy introduced fueled a notable rebound from October onward. This trend underscores the economy's underlying resilience, and the positive momentum is expected to continue into 2025, Lin said.

Friday's meeting extended the tone of the Central Economic Work Conference held in December, and stressed the effective implementation of more proactive and impactful macro policies, Cao Heping, an economist at Peking University, told the Global Times on Friday.

With the country's institutional strengths, such as those demonstrated by the annual two sessions over the effective planning of economic affairs, there is enough confidence to fulfill the goals and tasks in the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25) with high quality this year, Cao said.

China's economy has accumulated many advantages after more than 40 years of reform and opening-up, while new-type urbanization, green development and digitalization continue to boost the unleashing of economic potential, Cao said, stressing that the economy has an important foundation and favorable conditions to achieve sustained growth.

Commenting on China's role in the global economy, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian told a routine press conference on Thursday that China has been a stabilizer of the world economy and is an indispensable part of the stable and unimpeded supply and industrial chains in the world.

China will continue to put development front and center on the agenda of the international community, embrace the vision of a community with a shared future for mankind, firmly act as an "enabler" and provide more stability and certainty for the world economy, Lin said.

"The world's second-largest economy is expected to continue to contribute around 30 percent to world economic growth this year, with its high-quality development and high-level opening-up injecting stability and certainty to an uncertain world," Cao said.

China on Friday released the statistical communique on national economic and social development in 2024, stating that despite intensifying external headwinds and rising domestic pressures, China's economy has maintained growth momentum in 2024, Xinhua reported.

This resilience is attributed to the country's efforts to promote high-quality development while deepening reform and opening up, as it takes solid steps toward achieving Chinese modernization, per the communique.

China's economy grew by 5 percent year-on-year in 2024, according to the statistical communique released by the National Bureau of Statistics, reaffirming the figure released in January and staying in line with the official GDP growth target of around 5 percent in 2024. Meanwhile, the per capita GDP in 2024 increased by 5.1 percent over the previous year to 95,749 yuan. 

Eyes on two sessions

A slew of social and economic development goals for 2025 will be set at the upcoming annual two sessions, with the GDP growth target being among the most closely watched. 

Some economists expect the GDP growth target to be set at around 5 percent for 2025. Wen Bin, chief economist at China Minsheng Bank, told the Global Times on Friday that policymakers may set a GDP growth target of around 5 percent year-on-year during the upcoming two sessions.

"From the perspective of necessity, maintaining a growth rate of around 5 percent can provide a buffer for long-term planning and offer economic support for short-term employment absorption. From the perspective of feasibility, China's potential economic growth level remains at above 5 percent, and this goal can be achieved by strengthening counter-cyclical policy adjustments," Wen said.

Tian Xuan, president of the National Institute of Financial Research of Tsinghua University and a deputy to the 14th National People's Congress, told the Global Times on Friday that the country is expected to step up reforms to bolster the country's financial strength this year so as to improve the ground for innovation.

Tian said it is crucial to deepen reforms in the capital market to encourage investment of patient capital in tech-driven startups, extending evaluation periods for their investment performance and enhancing tolerance of their investment failures.

The development of new quality productive forces is expected to be a highlight in the economy this year, with future industries such as artificial intelligence (AI) and humanoid robotics full of innovation potential, Cao said, predicting that the country will set a higher deficit-to-GDP ratio during the upcoming two sessions, with the intensity and structure of fiscal spending to be improved for boosting consumption and sustaining growth momentum.

Despite lingering downward pressure, China's economic growth is off to a great start this year. A record high 9.02 billion passenger trips were seen in the 40-day 2025 Spring Festival travel rush, in a manifestation of China's immense vitality as well as the Chinese people's growing confidence in the nation's future.