China’s Major New Achievements in Economic and Social Development During the 14th Five-Year Plan Period

The period for the 14th Five-Year Plan for economic and social development, spanning 2021 to 2025, has marked the opening chapter of our new journey toward the Second Centenary Goal of building China into a great modern socialist country. Over these past five years, momentous changes of a magnitude not seen in a century have unfolded across the world at an increasingly fast pace, ushering in a period of turbulence and transformation. At home, we faced challenging tasks in advancing reform, promoting development, and ensuring stability, while the difficulty of delivering stable and healthy economic and social development increased considerably. In the face of this complex landscape, the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) has stood at the helm, charting our course forward. It has rallied the entire Party and all the Chinese people, leading them in confronting difficulties head-on and pressing ahead with determination. Like a great ship navigating through stormy seas, China has weathered serious risks and trials. It has secured groundbreaking, transformative, and historic results in economic and social development and taken solid and powerful strides toward building a modern socialist country.

I. Reaching new levels of economic output and achieving a significant increase in national strength 

Throughout the 14th Five-Year Plan period, China has stayed committed to the general principle of pursuing social and economic progress while ensuring stability. High-quality development has remained our central focus, and reform and innovation have served as the fundamental engines of growth. We have improved and made innovations in macro regulation, enabling us to withstand the severe shocks of the once-in-a-century Covid-19 pandemic, effectively mitigate adverse effects from a shifting external environment, and reach successive new milestones in economic output. As a result, China's economic strength has grown significantly, and its international influence has risen further.

During the 14th Five-Year Plan period, China achieved breakthroughs in the construction of large LNG carriers, aircraft carriers, and luxury cruise ships—collectively regarded as the “three crown jewels” of vessel manufacturing.

Top: Hai Yang Shi You 302, China’s first 12,000-cubicmeter LNG bunkering and supply vessel, is delivered at the CIMC Sinopacific Offshore and Engineering dock in Qidong Marine Engineering and Shipbuilding Industrial Park, Jiangsu Province, April 28, 2024. CNS / PHOTO BY XU CONGJUN

Middle: Fujian, China’s first domestically built aircraft carrier equipped with electromagnetic catapults, conducts its maiden sea trial, May 7, 2024. XINHUA / PHOTO BY DING ZIYU

Bottom: Adora Magic City, China’s first domestically built large cruise ship, berths at the Qingdao International Cruise Terminal, marking the start of its tour along China’s coast, April 6, 2025. PHOTO BY XINHUA REPORTER LI ZIHENG

Successive major thresholds surpassed in economic output 

During the 14th Five-Year Plan period, China's GDP crossed three major thresholds—110 trillion yuan, 120 trillion yuan, and 130 trillion yuan. In 2024, it topped 134 trillion yuan. In constant prices, this marks a 23.9% increase over 2020, with average annual growth of 5.5%. Total economic expansion during this period is expected to exceed 35 trillion yuan. For an economy of China's enormous scale, such continued growth is no small feat. It is all the more remarkable given the complex array of risks and challenges we faced throughout these years.

New milestones achieved in per capita development

Per capita GDP climbed from US$10,632 in 2020 to US$13,445 in 2024, remaining above US$13,000 for the past two years to place China among the ranks of upper-middle-income countries. Overall labor productivity per worker increased from 138,000 yuan to 174,000 yuan (at constant 2020 prices), growing at an average annual rate of 6%. This outpaced economic growth by 0.5 percentage points during the same period, signaling clear gains in development quality and efficiency. Life expectancy increased from 77.9 years to 79 years, reflecting sustained improvements in public health.

International influence further enhanced

In 2024, China's economic output reached approximately US$18.9 trillion at average annual exchange rates, accounting for roughly 17% of the global economy. This progress has further cemented our position as the world's second-largest economy. By global standards, China's economic performance is particularly impressive, with some of the highest growth rates among major economies. China's average annual contribution to global growth has remained at around 30%, establishing it as the most stable and reliable engine of world economic growth. These achievements clearly demonstrate both China's resilience and vitality as a major economy.

II. Delivering tangible results in innovation-driven development and boosting the growth of new quality productive forces

During the 14th Five-Year Plan period, China has kept innovation at the heart of its overall modernization drive. Our strength in strategic science and technology has grown, the innovation capacity of our enterprises has increased, our modern industrial system has registered rapid growth, and new growth drivers and strengths have been cultivated. In practice, all this has helped drive the gradual development of new quality productive forces, which are now playing an increasingly striking role in powering our high-quality development.

Marked gains in scientific and technological innovation capacity

R&D spending has reached record levels year after year, with nationwide investment exceeding 3.6 trillion yuan in 2024, the second-highest figure globally. In 2025, China climbed to the 10th place in the Global Innovation Index for the first time, rising four spots from 2020 and topping the rankings for middle-income economies. The country also now claims more of the world's top 100 innovation clusters than any other nation. 

China has realized accelerated progress toward greater self-reliance and strength in science and technology, with a series of major advances in space exploration, deep-sea technology, and other key sectors. Frontier fields such as artificial intelligence, quantum communications, and advanced chips have also yielded a wealth of breakthroughs. China is now rapidly evolving from the factory of the world into a global center of innovation.

New strides in the application of innovative advances

Intellectual property reserves have grown steadily, with valid domestic invention patents reaching over 5 million in June 2025 and high-value invention patents per 10,000 people rising to 15.3. New progress has been made in the application of intellectual property, as a host of high-value patents have been rapidly deployed in high-end, smart, and green scenarios. The commercialization rate for corporate invention patents rose from 44.9% in 2020 to 53.3% in 2024.

Thanks to in-depth integration between technological and industrial innovation, we are seeing high-quality technological outputs moving swiftly from laboratories to production lines. To date, China has cultivated over 60 national advanced manufacturing clusters across various emerging industries. Since the start of the 14th Five-Year Plan period, more than 100,000 new small and medium-sized enterprises using specialized and sophisticated technologies to produce novel and unique products have been established.

A higher gear in modern industrial development 

Strong progress has been made in agricultural modernization, with nationwide agricultural machinery power exceeding 1.1 billion kilowatts and mechanization rates surpassing 75%. Fresh advances in farm equipment have fueled the rise of new drivers across the agricultural sector. Traditional industries have undergone renewal and upgrading, while emerging industries have grown rapidly, resulting in a more optimized manufacturing structure. Between 2021 and 2024, the value added of large-scale high-tech manufacturing grew at an average annual rate of 9.2% in real terms, while investments in manufacturing technology transformation and upgrading grew at an average annual rate of 8.4%. 

The new economy—as exemplified by the trio of new industries, forms of business, and business models—has become a new engine of high-quality development. In 2024, the value added of these three components accounted for 18.01% of GDP, up 1.5 percentage points from 2020. China has built the world's largest and most extensive system of network infrastructure, with about 4.6 million 5G base stations in place by the end of July 2025. Over 100 million devices have now been connected to major industrial internet platforms, providing strong support for the widespread adoption of digital and intelligent applications.

III. Making swift and steady progress in fostering a new development dynamic and promoting positive interplay between domestic and international economic flows

Throughout the 14th Five-Year Plan period, China has steadfastly promoted the creation of a new development dynamic—a systemic, deep-seated reform with overarching implications. Guided by the strategy of expanding domestic demand, we have taken coordinated steps to grow the domestic market and turn China into a strong trading nation. These efforts have driven significant breakthroughs in fostering positive interplay between the domestic and international economies. 

The principal role of the domestic economy reinforced

With a firm commitment to the strategy of expanding domestic demand, we have refined the systems and mechanisms for driving consumption in order to further tap into the enormous potential of our vast market. Domestic demand has emerged as an increasingly powerful driver of growth, with consumption playing a greater leading role. Between 2021 and 2024, domestic demand accounted for an average of 86.8% of economic growth, with final consumption expenditure accounting for 59.9%—representing an increase of 11.1 percentage points over the 13th Five-Year Plan period (2016-2020). 

Meanwhile, investment has continued to play a critical role in optimizing the supply structure. Between 2021 and 2024, investment in high-tech industries grew at an average annual rate of 13.5%, outpacing overall investment growth by a notable margin.

The spatial layout of the domestic economy refined

People-centered urbanization has advanced at an accelerated pace. The share of permanent urban residents in the total population rose to 67% by the end of 2024, a 3.11 percentage-point increase from the end of 2020. Positive strides have been made in rural revitalization. As the channels for rural income growth have broadened, the urban-rural income gap has narrowed: the ratio of per capita disposable income between urban and rural residents fell from 2.56 in 2020 to 2.34 in 2024. 

Major regional development strategies and plans for coordinated regional development have been thoroughly implemented. The three major economic engines of the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, and the Yangtze River Delta have continued to power development in the country. Meanwhile, the central and western regions have further leveraged their late mover advantages. In 2024, the central and western regions together accounted for 42.9% of the national GDP.

The quality of flows between the domestic and international economies improved

Through active participation in the international division of labor and full integration into the global economy, China has accelerated the development of new institutions for a higher-standard open economy. Trade in goods increased from 32.2 trillion yuan in 2020 to 43.8 trillion yuan in 2024, achieving average annual growth of 8% and further cementing China’s position as the world’s largest trader in goods. 

Over the course of the 14th Five-Year Plan period, China has opened or expanded 40 ports of entry, bringing the total to 311. This has allowed it to basically establish a multi-dimensional network of ports of entry spanning land, air, and water across the eastern, central, and western regions. China remains the world’s second-largest trader in services by volume, surpassing US$1 trillion for the first time in 2024. As tourism and shopping in China have become increasingly popular, travel services have emerged as the fastest-growing segment of the country’s services trade. 

IV. Making strong and tangible progress in all-around reform and opening up and generating greater momentum for development

Since 2021, China has taken moves across the board, achieved breakthroughs in many areas, and made further progress in reform. We have ushered in a broader agenda of opening up across more areas and in greater depth, producing notable results in boosting development, vitality, and growth drivers.

Solid strides in building a high-standard socialist market economy

We have continued to improve the systems and rules underpinning the market economy. The negative list for market access has been reduced from 123 items in the 2020 version to 106 in the 2025 version. The business environment has continued to improve, and foundational market economy systems, such as those for property rights protection, market access, fair competition, and social credit, have been refined. 

We have honored the commitments to both the public and non-public sectors, with reform of state-owned capital and state-owned enterprises (SOEs) being carried to a deeper level, and the Private Sector Promotion Law coming into force. The total assets of central SOEs rose from 68.8 trillion yuan in 2020 to 91 trillion yuan by the end of 2024. The number of private enterprises has continued to rise, with imports and exports by private firms posting year-on-year growth for 21 consecutive quarters through the first half of 2025. 

The development of a unified national market has been advanced. The underlying framework for basic data systems has been rapidly improved, and logistics services have become both more affordable and more efficient. A unified national electricity market has taken initial shape, and flows of goods, services, and production factors have been improved. In 2024, China's total logistics costs fell to 14.1% of GDP, while market-based electricity transactions rose to account for 63% of the country's total electricity consumption.

Rapid development of a diversified trade structure

Amid a complex external environment marked by a rising globalization backlash, China has held firm on using openness to drive reform and development. We have encouraged enterprises to continue developing traditional markets while expanding into emerging ones, enabling us to consolidate and diversify our trade structure. 

China is now a major trading partner for more than 150 countries and territories. Trade with Belt and Road countries surged from 29.1% of total imports and exports in 2020 to 50.3% in 2024. During the period from 2021 to 2024, imports and exports with emerging markets, including ASEAN, Latin American, African, and Central Asian countries, grew at an average annual rate of over 10%. The China Railway Express now serves over 200 cities across 26 European countries, with the total number of completed trips surpassing 110,000. 

Expanded opening up at the institutional level

We have seen a steady stream of outcomes emerging from pilot free trade zones and other testing grounds for institutional opening up. During the 14th Five-Year Plan period, the number of pilot free trade zones in China has increased to 22. This has given rise to a new pattern of reform and opening up across China's eastern, southern, western, northern, and central regions. Pilot free trade zones have generated almost 200 institutional innovations. In 2024, these zones accounted for 19.6% of all foreign trade and 24.3% of all foreign investment nationwide. At the end of 2025, we will usher in a new phase of institutional opening up with the launch of island-wide special customs operations for Hainan Free Trade Port. 

We have continued working to foster a world-class business environment that is market-oriented, law-based, and internationalized. Significant cuts to the negative list for foreign investment and the complete elimination of restrictions on foreign investment in manufacturing have helped open free-flowing two-way channels for high-standard opening up. From 2021 through May 2025, cumulative foreign direct investment in China stood at 4.7 trillion yuan. As China has emerged as an increasingly favored destination for foreign investment, the structure of the investment has continued to improve.

V. Steadily promoting a green, low-carbon transition and making new advances in building a Beautiful China

During the 14th Five-Year Plan period, China has prioritized ecological conservation and green development and accelerated the shift toward an eco-friendly growth model. We have made coordinated efforts to cut carbon emissions, reduce pollution, pursue green development, and boost economic growth with a view to ensuring harmony between humanity and nature. These efforts have helped create a more beautiful China with greener mountains, cleaner water, and clearer air, further highlighting China's underlying commitment to green development.

Impressive progress in the transition to green energy

Thanks to rapid advances in clean energy, China has built the world's largest and fastest-growing renewable energy system. Renewable sources now account for roughly 60% of installed power generation capacity. Between 2021 and 2024, combined output from solar, nuclear, and wind power grew at an average annual rate of 20.3%, meaning that one in every three kilowatt-hours consumed nationwide now comes from green energy sources. 

Energy efficiency has improved substantially. Between 2021 and 2024, energy consumption per unit of GDP fell by a total of 11.6%, enabling China to achieve one of the fastest reductions in energy consumption intensity worldwide. Meanwhile, the share of non-fossil fuels in total energy consumption climbed from 16% in 2020 to 19.8% in 2024.

Further improvement in environmental quality

These improvements have been possible thanks to the ongoing drive to keep our skies blue, waters clear, and land clean. China's success in this area has proven that a major developing country can effectively protect its environment while achieving rapid economic and social development. In cities at and above the prefectural level, air quality has been good or excellent on around 87% of the days since the start of the 14th Five-Year Plan period. In 2024, the percentage of China's surface water meeting Grade III or higher in the nation's five-tier water quality system rose to 90.4%. 

Ecological protection and restoration efforts have been intensified. In 2024, China's forest coverage exceeded 25%—an increase of roughly two percentage points since 2020. China has accounted for about one-quarter of the world's newly created green spaces, making it a global leader in terms of the area added and the pace of progress.

The Yebatan Hydropower Station is under construction at the junction of Baiyu County in Sichuan Province and Konjo County in Xizang Autonomous Region, June 30, 2025. The station is one of the 102 major projects under China’s 14th Five-Year Plan, as well as a key supporting project for the national clean energy base on the upper Jinsha River, which integrates hydro, wind, and solar power. XINHUA / PHOTO BY CHEN HAO

Steady development of green productive forces

Green and low-carbon industries have flourished, emerging both as new engines of economic growth and fresh drivers of foreign trade. Between 2021 and 2024, large manufacturers rapidly expanded production of green products, increasing output of solar cells by an average annual rate of 44.5%, ultra-clear rolled photovoltaic (PV) glass by 114.7%, and bio-based chemical fibers by 89.6%. 

In 2024, China produced 13.168 million alternative energy vehicles, eight times higher than the 2020 figure. The year of 2024 also marked the tenth consecutive year that China led the world in both production and sales of alternative energy vehicles. By year-end, the country's alternative energy vehicle fleet stood at 31.4 million—meaning over half of all such vehicles worldwide were running on Chinese roads. In 2024, China's exports of the “new trio,” namely, electric vehicles, lithium batteries, and photovoltaic products, posted a 2.6-fold increase over 2020, providing the world with an abundant supply of eco-friendly products.

VI. Steadily improving living standards and driving robust development of social programs

During the 14th Five-Year Plan period, China has remained firmly committed to the people-centered philosophy of development. We have made improving people's lives and enhancing their wellbeing the immutable goal of development. We have committed serious efforts to resolving the pressing difficulties and problems that concern people most, ensuring that the fruits of development benefit all our people more fairly. As a result, people's sense of gain, happiness, and security has steadily increased.

Higher living standards

We have placed greater emphasis on our employment-first orientation across all sectors and effectively ensured the underlying stability of employment. By the end of 2024, China's total workforce stood at 734 million, including 473 million urban workers, an increase of 10.74 million from the end of 2020. Between 2021 and 2024, the year-end surveyed urban unemployment rate remained between 5.1% and 5.5%. 

Economic growth and stable employment have effectively boosted personal incomes. Nationwide per capita disposable income rose from 32,000 yuan in 2020 to 41,000 yuan in 2024, representing an average annual growth rate of 5.5% after adjusting for inflation, and remaining in step with economic growth. Rural and urban residents have also seen improvements in the quality of life, as reflected in the upgrading of durable consumer goods. The number of private vehicles per 100 households climbed from 37.1 in 2020 to 51.2 in 2024.

Enhanced multi-tiered social security system

In line with the principles of meeting basic needs, ensuring full coverage, and strengthening institutional frameworks, China has built the world's largest social security system. 

As of July 2025, 1.071 billion people were enrolled in basic old-age insurance, 246 million in unemployment insurance, and 301 million in work-related injury insurance—representing increases of 72 million, 29 million, and 33 million, respectively, from the end of 2020. The programs for both basic old-age insurance and basic medical insurance now cover over 95% of the population.

Stronger development of social programs

China is now on par with upper-middle-income countries in accessibility to basic education. In 2024, the gross enrollment rate for preschool education reached 92%, the student retention rate for nine-year compulsory education stood at 95.9%, and the gross enrollment rate of senior secondary education reached 92%—up 6.8, 0.7, and 0.8 percentage points from 2020, respectively. The average years of schooling for new entrants to the workforce now exceeds 14 years. 

Steady strides have been made in building a Healthy China. In 2024, the public health literacy rate reached 31.9%, an increase of 8.7 percentage points from 2020. The public cultural services system has been further improved. By the end of 2024, the number of registered museums nationwide reached 7,046, representing 21.7% growth from the end of 2020, while the number of active registered users at public libraries climbed to 110 million, up 9.8%. 

On the international stage, the appeal of Chinese culture has continued to grow, with cultural product exports exceeding 900 billion yuan in 2024, an increase of over 40% from 2020. Recreational and competitive sports have been developed through a coordinated approach, and people's intellectual and cultural lives have been enriched. Nationwide sports facilities now cover more than 4 billion square meters, an increase of 1.13 billion square meters from 2020.

VII. Reinforcing the foundations of security and building strong defenses against risks

During the 14th Five-Year Plan period, China has applied a holistic approach to national security, ensuring that high-quality development and greater security are mutually reinforcing. We have continuously enhanced our ability to ensure security in food, energy, and critical industrial and supply chains, while improving the long-term mechanisms for preventing and defusing risks. These efforts have effectively strengthened the safeguards for China's economic security.

Effectively guaranteed food security

We have enjoyed successive bumper grain harvests, with total output remaining above 650 million metric tons for ten consecutive years. In 2024, we reached a new milestone as grain production crossed the 700 million mark for the first time, representing an increase of 37 million metric tons over 2020. The per capita share of grain reached 500 kilograms, well above the internationally recognized food security threshold of 400 kilograms. This has ensured that China's food security remains firmly in our own hands.

A more solid foundation for energy security

As the world's largest energy producer, China possesses a robust north-south and east-west energy infrastructure network, which has provided a strong guarantee for our energy needs in both production and daily life. 

We have built the world's most comprehensive and largest energy system. Between 2021 and 2024, total primary energy production grew at an average annual rate of 5.4%, significantly faster than during the 13th Five-Year Plan period. We have also secured rapid progress in building a new energy system, with installed renewable energy capacity surpassing that of thermal power for the first time. China now leads the world in installed capacity for hydro, wind, solar, and biomass power generation.

Stronger resilience of industrial and supply chains

The strengths of China's comprehensive manufacturing sector have become more evident, laying more solid foundations for the country's development as a strong manufacturing nation. Between 2021 and 2024, the value added of Chinese manufacturing grew at an average annual rate of 5.4% in real terms, accounting for nearly 30% of total global growth. China has ranked first worldwide in terms of manufacturing scale for 15 consecutive years and leads global production in over 200 major industrial products. 

Our long-standing advantages in equipment manufacturing and other areas have become increasingly prominent, while weaknesses in major sectors have been rapidly addressed. Breakthroughs continue to be made in core technologies in key fields, allowing more sectors to make the leap from quantitative to qualitative improvements and enabling more firms to shift from low-end production to mid- and high-end production, and from being followers to industry leaders. The contribution of equipment manufacturing to the total value added of industrial enterprises, each with an annual income of more than 20 million yuan, rose from 33.7% in 2020 to 34.6% in 2024. In addition, we have seen China's critical industrial chains become more self-supporting and risk-resilient. 

We owe our major new achievements in China's economic and social development during the 14th Five-Year Plan period to the strong leadership of the CPC Central Committee with Xi Jinping at its core, and to the sound guidance of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era. They are also the result of the entire Party and all the Chinese people forging ahead in unity, overcoming difficulties through concerted efforts, and striving for concrete progress.

The dynamic practices of the 14th Five-Year Plan period have fully demonstrated a number of important points, which are as follows. We must uphold the CPC's centralized, unified leadership over economic work, keep improving our Party's capacity to lead economic endeavors, fully leverage its core role of providing overall leadership and coordinating the efforts of all sides, and properly harness the strengths of the socialist system with Chinese characteristics. All this provides a fundamental guarantee for China's economic and social development. We must follow a people-centered approach, always regard the fundamental interests of the overwhelming majority of people as the immutable goal of all our work, steadily strive to realize people's aspirations for a better life, and work continuously to unleash the enthusiasm, initiative, and creativity of all our people. This is where the greatest source of strength for China's economic and social development lies. We must regard development as the top priority, fully and faithfully apply the new development philosophy, move faster in fostering a new development dynamic, work to promote high-quality development, strive to achieve greater self-reliance and strength in science and technology, and develop new quality productive forces in line with local conditions. These points indicate the only sure path for successfully advancing China's economic and social development. We must make good use of the important tools of reform and opening up. We need to deepen comprehensive reform and opening up with a focus on advancing Chinese modernization, drive reform and development through greater openness, and fully leverage the guiding role of economic reform to develop well-defined and mature institutions. These endeavors represent the fundamental forces propelling China's economic and social development. We must continue to ensure both development and security, carrying out coordinated planning for national security and economic and social development, so as to effectively prevent and defuse risks and challenges and foster positive interplay between high-quality development and greater security. These efforts provide the strongest possible guarantee for China's economic and social development.

Looking ahead to the 15th Five-Year Plan period from 2026 through 2030, China will enter a critical phase for reinforcing the foundations and pushing ahead toward basically realizing socialist modernization by 2035. Standing at this new historical starting point, we are seeing the strengths of Chinese socialism, China's enormous market, its complete industrial system, and its abundant human resources all coming to the fore. China has both the capability and the confidence to overcome difficulties and challenges on the path forward and steer its economy toward an even brighter future.

(Originally appeared in Qiushi Journal, Chinese edition, No. 19, 2025)