MK sports East China's Jiangsu Province on January 17, 2025. On the day, data from te National Bureau of Statistics showed that China's gross domestic product (GDP) grew 5 percent year on year in 2024, meeting the government's full-year target. Photo: VCG" src="https://www.globaltimes.cn/Portals/0/attachment/2025/2025-01-18/d7fb3266-ea75-4fca-8ea0-161987586a67.jpeg" />

Photo shows Longtan Container Terminal of Nanjing Port in Nanjing, East China's Jiangsu Province on January 17, 2025. On the day, data from te National Bureau of Statistics showed that China's gross domestic product (GDP) grew 5 percent year on year in 2024, meeting the government's full-year target. Photo: VCG

China's GDP grew 5 percent year-on-year to 134.9 trillion yuan ($18.41 trillion) in 2024, breaking the 130-trillion-yuan mark for the first time, according to data released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) on Friday. The positive expansion is in line with the country's annual growth target, demonstrating that the world's second-largest economy has successfully navigated turbulent waters last year and maintained its good growth momentum, analysts said. 

The 5-percent annual GDP growth rate also places China among the world's major fastest-growing economies, Chinese officials and analysts said, highlighting the country's irreplaceable role as both a major engine and stabilizer of the global economy. Though difficulties remain and could aggregate, the country is poised to stay on a stable growth track as more supportive policies will produce effects in 2025, paving the way for the country to steadily march toward the first year of the 15th Five-Year plan (2026-30) period, analysts said. 

In 2024, the added value of industrial enterprises above designated size increased by 5.8 percent year-on-year, while fixed-asset investment also edging up by 3.2 percent, according to NBS.

In terms of domestic consumption, the retail sales of consumer goods were up 3.5 percent year-on-year in 2024, NBS data showed.

During a press conference of the State Council Information Office on Friday to launch the set of economic indicators, head of NBS Kang Yi said that in 2024, China has achieved a new breakthrough in economic volume and made new contributions to global development in a challenging time. He, in a rare case, used five "not easies" to describe the achievements. 

"It is not easy for China's economic aggregate to reach a new level in the face of increasing external pressure and internal difficulties, while it is not easy for a package of incremental policies to be introduced promptly, effectively boosting social confidence and promoting an obvious economic rebound," Kang said. 

He added that it is also not easy for the economy to climb over the hurdles in the process of achieving new results amid high-quality development. It is not easy for the economy to strengthen the stabilization of employment and promotion of income generation, and to ensure and improve people's livelihoods in a solid manner. 

Meanwhile, it is not also easy to integrate development and security, strengthen food and energy security, and orderly and effectively resolve risks in key areas, according to Kang. 

Tian Yun, an economist based in Beijing, told the Global Times that the 5-percent growth demonstrated the strong rebound momentum and resilience of the Chinese economy, despite immense pressure from a complex global environment, insufficient domestic demand, and rising geopolitical uncertainties.

"There are undeniable short-term fluctuations throughout specific quarters, but the Chinese economy has managed to overcome those challenges and, in particular, achieved higher-than-expected growth in the fourth quarter," Tian noted.

In the fourth quarter, China's GDP expanded 5.4 percent year-on-year, NBS data showed. 

The reading in the fourth quarter accelerated from the 4.6-percent growth recorded in the third quarter and also represented the highest quarterly growth of the year. Chinese economists reached by the Global Times said that was partly driven by the manifestation of a package of incremental policies that have effectively shored up domestic consumption and lifted up market expectation. 

China's GDP grew by 4.7 percent and 5.3 percent in the second and first quarter of 2024, respectively.

"Chinese policymakers have introduced a series of incremental policies since September, and key economic indicators have gradually stabilized after several months of adjustments. Following that, more measures have been launched intensively at the beginning of 2025, and the continuity of these policies has positive significance for boosting market confidence and promoting high-quality economic development," Yao Jingyuan, a special researcher of the Counselors' Office of the State Council, told the Global Times.

Chinese analysts noted that the slew of measures are targeted to address key structural contradictions of the economy, such as shoring up domestic demand with trade-in programs, driving up various investment initiatives and stabilizing property market downturn.

In 2024, the vigorous implementation of trade-in programs has helped bolster the consumption revival. For instance, retail sales of household electrical appliances and audio-visual equipment in units above the quota increased by 12.3 percent over the previous year, accelerating by 11.8 percentage points over the previous year, according to Kang.

The effective implementation of macro-policy support is one of the important foundations to achieve China's annual economic growth target, Li Chang'an, a professor at the Academy of China Open Economy Studies at the University of International Business and Economics, told the Global Times.

Tian added that while tackling with those downward pressures, China has gradually established a mechanism for endogenous and innovative growth, which is propelled by industries involving new quality productive forces such as artificial intelligence.

Growth prospect

According to Tian, with the 5-percent growth, the Chinese economy is expected to contribute to around 30 percent of the global growth last year. 

China's goods imports reached $2.6 trillion in 2024, as its massive market has provided new opportunities for opening up and cooperation among countries, Kang noted at the press briefing.

China is set to announce its GDP growth goal for 2025 during this year's two sessions in March. 

Some analysts reached by the Global Times expect that the annual goal this year could still be around 5 percent. Currently, a number of Chinese localities are holding their two sessions, and the economic growth targets proposed by first-tier cities like Beijing and Shanghai are set at around 5 percent.

"Looking ahead, Chinese economy could still face downward pressures in 2025 amid heightened uncertainties in the global market. But I remain optimistic about the growth prospect as the package of incremental policies rolled out in September will continue to take effect. Also, more measures are expected to be introduced to further stimulate domestic demand," Tian said. 

Tian predicted that the consumption will show a palpable pattern of acceleration and improvement in 2025, and he expected that social retail sales this year to be 0.5 percentage point higher than last year's. 

"But the Chinese economy also needs to be prepared for a potential escalation of trade tensions with the US, which could weigh on the country's export engines," Tian noted.

The tone-setting Central Economic Work Conference in December outlined nine key tasks for 2025 with "vigorously boosting consumption, improving investment efficiency, and expanding domestic demand on all fronts" at the top.

It is anticipated the deficit ratio approved by the two sessions in March will be higher than last year. At the same time, the issuance of long-term government bonds will be intensified, and fiscal spending will be further enhanced. In addition, policies aimed at structural adjustment, improving people's livelihoods and promoting consumption will be more proactive, Yao said.