China targets economic growth of 4.5 percent to 5 percent this year and will strive for better in practice, according to a Government Work Report submitted Thursday to the country's top legislature for deliberation.

The annual growth target was unveiled in the Government Work Report delivered by Premier Li Qiang to the National People's Congress (NPC), the national legislature, which began its annual session on Thursday morning.

Over the next five years, China expects to keep its GDP growth within an appropriate range, with annual growth rates to be determined in light of actual conditions, according to the report.

This will lay a solid foundation for achieving the goal of doubling China's 2020 per capita GDP by 2035 to reach the level of a moderately developed country, the report said.

The target of 4.5 percent to 5 percent economic growth for 2026, while striving to achieve better results in practice, is intended to strike a balance between what is needed and what is feasible, said Shen Danyang, head of the group responsible for drafting this year's government work report, according to Xinhua.

The setting of the economic growth target for 2026 is "proactive and pragmatic", reflecting a broad assessment of domestic conditions and shifts in the external environment, Shen said.

Analysts said that the target range reflects a more prudent assessment of global uncertainties, and allows greater policy flexibility to focus on high-quality development while still signaling policymakers' confidence in maintaining stable growth in the world's second-largest economy amid rising global risks and turmoil.

Flexibility allowed 

This is not the first time China has set its GDP growth target in the form of a range. For example, in 2016, a target range was set at 6.5 to 7 percent. In 2019, the target was set at 6 to 6.5 percent.

Lawmakers, national political advisors, analysts as well as executives of multinationals said that the targeted growth range is set to ensure the Chinese economy gets off to a good start in the inaugural year of the 15th Five-Year Plan period (2026-30), and the figure is of paramount importance to pinpointing new growth engines and maintaining stable and sustained economic growth.

NPC deputy Yu Miaojie, president of Liaoning University, told the Global Times on Thursday that a growth target range of 4.5 percent to 5 percent allows greater policy flexibility, enabling localities to focus on high-quality economic growth as their primary goal and, more importantly, place greater focus on people's livelihoods.

"Maintaining an annual economic growth rate within this range reflects the stability of China's economy," Yu said, noting the steady track record of economic growth in the past several years.

Amid escalating geopolitical conflicts and growing global turmoil, China's economy has maintained stable and sustained growth, driven by the country's economic resilience and social stability, Yu said.

Denis Depoux, global managing director of strategy consulting firm Roland Berger, told the Global Times on Thursday that it is crucial to understand that this "growth consensus" is not a sign of weakness but a necessary trade-off to achieve higher-priority objectives.

"In the context of rising global uncertainty, the growth target creates fiscal and political buffers for China to drive reform and address real problems without the pressure of chasing high growth at all costs. It allows for a significant reallocation of capital away from inefficient investments and toward the real needs of the economy, namely technology and people," Depoux said.

Still, China's GDP growth target range, if achieved, would largely surpass the world's average growth rate in 2026 with the world economy facing unprecedented geopolitical and economic challenges and turmoil, analysts said.

China's newly announced growth range for 2026 is a firm answer to the "China peak theory" and the Chinese economy is expected to serve as a source of stability for the global economy, they noted.

Notably, the Chinese economy is projected to grow faster in 2026 than the US, Japan and the Euro area, according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), with the US economy projected to grow 2.4 percent in 2026, 0.7 percent for Japan and 1.3 percent for the Euro area. 

The projected pace would also be among the highest for major economies globally, Shen said.

"The growth target is definitely achievable - the target is set in a very practical and realistic way," Yin Tongyue, a National People's Congress deputy and chairman of Chinese automaker Chery Holding Group Co, told the Global Times as he walked out the Great Hall of the People after listening to the delivery of the Government Work Report in Beijing on Thursday.

Pragmatic approach 

Foreign media outlets closely followed China's GDP growth target, with several reports noting that the target range is the lowest range in decades, but creates flexibility for reforms.

Reuters reported that a "lower growth target gives Beijing more flexibility to implement reforms that make the world's second-largest economy less reliant on exports for growth", while the Guardian reported that the figure "reflects an economic strategy that is shifting away from export-led growth to a model that leaders hope will be more resilient to external shocks."

The Wall Street Journal wrote that the "less ambitious growth target also gives Chinese leaders some room to maneuver the economy through complicated geopolitical terrain" and the unchanged deficit target should "give policymakers ample room to rev up government spending if needed."

This is to do with the stage of economic development, as economic growth cannot sustain a continuously high speed, Qu Yongyi, a researcher with the Institute of Industrial Economics of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences and a national political advisor, told the Global Times on Thursday. "This target range reflects that the government is not solely pursuing GDP growth but is placing greater emphasis on high-quality development."

Tian Xuan, an NPC deputy and a Boya Distinguished Professor of Finance at Peking University, told the Global Times on Thursday that the GDP growth target range is not about "slowing down growth" but rather a "recalibration" of the pace of development.

"It represents the optimal solution found between long-term goals and immediate challenges - one that both upholds the baseline needed to achieve the 2035 vision and reflects a pragmatic approach to development," Tian said. "The modest downward adjustment is not a simple numerical change, but a pragmatic step grounded in economic reality and a move tailored precisely to long-term development goals."

The "range-based regulation" sets a lower bound for growth while preserving upward flexibility and sufficient room for policy maneuvering — all to safeguard the certainty of high-quality development. This also means that achieving the target will be anything but easy; it will require sustained and arduous effort, The People's Daily noted in a commentary published on Thursday.

The commentary, titled China has set an economic growth target of 4.5 percent to 5 percent this year. How should we view it, said that to make further progress from an already high level, we must emphasize both quantity and, more importantly, quality. Can we go even faster? It's not that we cannot; it's that we choose not to. The very "first lesson of the new year" stressed curbing impulsive pursuit of governance achievements, carrying profound significance. 

"Pursuing genuine and unvarnished growth, and advancing high-quality, sustainable development." This demonstrates the determination to forge ahead despite pressure and strive for innovation and high quality, it said. 

China slammed protectionist actions by the US and the EU against Chinese car exports on Tuesday, saying that the leapfrog development of China's vehicle industry has provided cost-effective products with high quality to the world.

Division of labor and mutually beneficial collaboration are distinctive features of the auto industry chain, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said during a regular press conference. 

According to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers, in January, China exported 443,000 vehicles, up by 47.4 percent year-on-year, maintaining rapid growth. The numbers reflected the high-quality development and strong innovation of China's manufacturing industry, Mao noted.

Every one in three exported automobiles from China is an electric model, which contributes significantly to the world's green and low-carbon transition, the spokesperson said.

Protectionist measures taken by relevant countries against China to turn normal trade activities into security and ideological issues, build "small yards with high fences" in the name of "de-risking," and attempt to "trip others up" instead of "running faster" may seem like a win, but they will actually lead to a loss of one's own long-term development and encumber the progress and prosperity of the world, Mao said.

China believes in solidarity, cooperation and openness rather than division, confrontation and isolation. We believe it's important to accommodate the interests of others while pursuing one's own, work for common development while seeking one's own development, create a world-class, market-oriented and law-based environment for global economic and trade cooperation, and make economic globalization more inclusive and beneficial to all, Mao noted.

US Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo issued a warning over the potential national security threats posed by electric vehicles (EVs) manufactured in China, reported Bloomberg in January. This came as the Biden administration considered implementing further tariffs on vehicles imported from the Asian nation.

The rapid growth of China's auto industry and its expanding export scale are bound to draw attention from other countries. Other Chinese industries have been affected by trade protectionism during their export processes, Cui Dongshu, secretary-general of the China Passenger Car Association, told the Global Times on Tuesday.

The EU has launched several investigations against China. Among these, the European Commission is probing a subsidiary of the Chinese rail company CRRC to ascertain if it received subsidies that unfairly allowed it to undercut European competitors. Additionally, an anti-subsidy investigation into Chinese EVs commenced in October 2023.

The investigations into China's auto exports by the US and the EU are not conducted from a perspective of global interest but originate from hegemonic and unilateral thinking, said Gao Lingyun, an expert at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences who closely follows China-US trade issues, on Tuesday.

China's opening-up has provided opportunities for developing countries worldwide. China's participation in global governance initiatives is based on common values, not just its own interests. This is China's attitude toward globalization, Gao noted.

Searches for hotels in Singapore on Chinese online travel platform Qunar.com surged 4 times after China and Singapore announced a 30-day mutual visa exemption arrangement for ordinary passport holders starting from February 9.

Singapore is currently among the top five of popular travel destinations among Chinese tourists ahead of the upcoming Spring Festival holidays which kicks off from February 10, data the company sent to the Global Times showed on Thursday.

According to data VariFlight sent to the Global Times on Thursday, there have been a total of 712 flights flying between the Chinese mainland and Singapore in recent weeks, recovering to 97 percent of pre-COVID-19 levels, with more than 100 flights per day.

Tongcheng Travel told the Global Times that Singapore-related searches rose by more than 340 percent on the platform within an hour after the visa-free policy announcement, with the searches for air tickets flying to and back from Singapore jumping by more than 5 times.

Data from the online travel agency Trip.com indicated a rapid surge in real-time search popularity for Singapore. Within 10 minutes of the announcement, the popularity of Singapore-related travel products saw sharp growth of over 30 percent.

On the platform, the search levels among Singaporean tourists for keywords related to China also saw a marked growth of over 20 percent month-on month. According to Trip.com, as of Wednesday, the number of orders by Chinese tourists traveling to Singapore during the upcoming Chinese Spring Festival holidays has grown up by more than 14 times compared to the same period last year.

China and Singapore are mutually significant travel destinations and sources of tourists, Qin Jing, general manager of the Public Affairs Department at Trip.com, told the Global Times in a statement on Thursday.

The people of both countries engage closely in business, tourism, and family visits, and the visa waiver will stimulate interpersonal exchanges between the two nations, promoting growth in the tourism industry, Qin said.

The China-donated Integrated Center for Technological Training (CINFOTEC) Huambo, a vocational skills training center, was officially inaugurated in Central Angola's Huambo on January 12, and is expected to boost Angola's industrial and high-end technology development, the Global Times learned from the state-owned Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC) on Tuesday. 

Angolan President João Manuel Gonçalves Lourenço cut the ribbon to mark the official launch of the project at the inauguration ceremony amid applause and public anticipation from thousands of local residents gathered at the site. 

At the ceremony, Teresa Dias, Minister of Public Administration, Labor, and Social Security, thanked the Chinese government for its support in the creation of talent in the country and said the inauguration of the center will contribute to the improvement of training quality and help bridge the large gap in the specialization of cutting-edge technology in Angola. 

She expressed her expectation that the center would create more opportunities for the development of manufacturing, mining, agriculture, and communication industries in Angola.

Chen Feng, charge d'affaires at the Chinese Embassy in Angola, said the Chinese government has always supported capacity building in Africa. In 2023, China proposed three initiatives to assist in Africa's modernization process, including the Plan for China-Africa Cooperation on Talent Development.

The completion of the center will help more Angolan youth realize their dreams and provide stronger talent support for Angola's independent and sustainable development, she said.

"Over the last 10 to 15 years, China has proven to be Angola's biggest commercial and political partner, with the partnership yielding fruits in various segments, and professional training and employment have been prioritized in these last years," Secretary of State for Labor and Social Security Pedro Filipe said in an interview with the Xinhua News Agency.

At present, Angola has established cooperation projects with a number of Chinese enterprises to provide internship and training opportunities for Angolan youth.

Geraldo Pambasange, the director of CINFOTEC Huambo, said the center will train 2,400 students annually in its first phase, with the first class scheduled to start on January 15.

The project, which was designed and project-managed by the AVIC, covers an area of more than 20,000 square meters. It includes 30 laboratories, and six workshops for robotics, machining, computer science, measurement, and automotive repair. The construction of the project began on June 24, 2021, and it was completed on October 31, 2023. 

This project is another high-quality result of Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) cooperation, which will further promote the development of China-Angola relations and deepen the friendship between the two peoples.

The 20th Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI) on Wednesday adopted a communiqué at its third plenary session,  pledging to continuously deepen the fight against corruption, seriously investigate and punish corruption in the financial sector, state-owned enterprises, universities, sports, tobacco, medicine, grain purchase and marketing, and statistics, as well as resolutely eliminate systemic corruption risks and hidden dangers so as to comprehensively consolidate a hard-won and overwhelming victory.

The third plenary session was held in Beijing from Monday to Wednesday with 238 attendees and 132 members of the CCDI. 

According to the communiqué, as 2024 marks the 75th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China and is a key year for achieving the goals and tasks of the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25), the country will continue to do a good job in discipline inspection and supervision this year.

The communiqué stressed that this year will focus on eradicating the conditions that give rise to corruption to deepen the fight against this behavior. Ensuring that officials "do not dare, are not able, and do not want to be corrupt" is the fundamental guideline for battling corruption.

The communiqué said the country will continue to focus on key issues, key areas, key targets, new types of corruption and hidden corruption, and severely punish corruption linked with government and business as the top priority in the battle. 

China will deepen efforts to crack down on corruption in finance, state-owned enterprises, energy, tobacco, medicine, infrastructure projects, and bidding, also with focus on cross-border corruption. 

China will strengthen joint investigation into bribery as well as officials taking bribes, and improve the joint punishment mechanism for key bribe givers. Also, it will continue to promote national anti-corruption legislation, according to the communiqué.

Li Qiang, Zhao Leji, Wang Huning, Cai Qi and Ding Xuexiang, all members of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, attended the meeting. 

Li Xi, a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and secretary of the CCDI, presided over the meeting. The session reviewed the work of disciplinary inspection and supervision in 2023, deployed tasks for 2024, and approved the work report on promoting the high-quality development of disciplinary inspection and supervision in the new journey presented by Li.

Xi Jinping, general secretary of the CPC Central Committee, Chinese president and chairman of the Central Military Commission, emphasized at the session on Monday that after 10 years of unremitting anti-graft efforts in the new era, an overwhelming victory has been achieved and fully consolidated, according to the Xinhua News Agency on Tuesday night.

However, the situation remains severe and complex. "We must have a clear understanding of the latest developments and trends in the fight against corruption, and of the soil and conditions that give rise to corruption. The Party must continuously combat corruption with tenacity, perseverance and precision, and resolutely win the tough and protracted battle against corruption," Xi said.

Before and during the three-day third plenary session, China's state broadcaster China Central Television (CCTV) aired the four-episode anti-graft blockbuster Continued Efforts, Deepening Progress for four consecutive days. The documentary, which came to an end on Tuesday, features 12 typical corruption cases, with implicated officials confessing their crimes on camera, including those related to the high-profile anti-corruption efforts covering Chinese soccer. Leaving audiences in shock, the documentary indicates that China's anti-corruption efforts in 2024 will be more potent and thorough, said experts.

Also, judging from the latest communiqué, Chinese experts say that in the new year China will step up its efforts in combating corruption in a deeper dimension, particularly in resource-intensive industries such as the financial and health sectors.

Tang Renwu, dean of the School of Governance of Beijing Normal University, told the Global Times on Wednesday that an unprecedented achievement in anti-corruption was made in 2023 as the largest number of corrupt officials were arrested since the 18th CPC National Congress in 2012.

In the first nine months of 2023, Chinese discipline inspection and supervision agencies filed around 470,000 cases, with 12,000 individuals involved in bribery cases. A total of 45 senior officials were investigated in 2023, the highest number since 2012.

The crackdowns on corruption will further intensify, which can serve as a crucial deterrence to corrupt officials, Tang said, noting the comprehensive anti-graft drive is welcomed and supported by the people.

Although the country has gained a decisive victory in the fight against corruption, there is still a long way to go and the next step should be to improve and establish a system in which officials won't desire to commit corruption, which will be the major task for 2024, Tang said. 

The Tongliang Dragon is dubbed as the "No.1 Dragon in China" both at home and abroad. ­Tongliang Dragon Dance and Tongliang Dragon Lantern Caizha (colorful silk handicraft) are two national intangible cultural heritages (ICHs) in the district of Tongliang, Southwest China's Chongqing Municipality. 

In recent years, the district has used the dragon culture as a leverage to strengthen the systematic protection of ICHs through continued innovation and development.

A large-scale ICH live show "Dream Chasing - Tongliang Dragon" was staged at the Xuan­tianhu Dragon Dance Square, which has renovated the arena to enhance audiences' visual experience. 

The extravaganza is set against the backdrop of Tongliang's dragon culture and centers on Chinese folktale "Carp Leaps into the Dragon's Gate," telling a story of how Chinese people uphold the spirit of the dragon, stay true to their original aspiration, work hard, pursue their dreams and ultimately achieve success. 

The Dragon Dance show showcases various ICH performances, including the Tongliang Dragon Dance and Lantern Dance, allowing the audiences to better experience ICHs and promote traditional Chinese culture.

The Tongliang Dragon Dance is a precious cultural resource that has enabled the sustainable and healthy development of dragon culture for thousands of years. Today, this culture has entered elementary and secondary schools and has been documented in local textbooks.

Due to continuous rain and snow combined with drastic temperature drops, and a peak in respiratory diseases, the number of blood donors has significantly decreased in multiple cities across China, posing a challenge for blood banks in ensuring sufficient blood supply in a number of localities. 

The central blood station in Yuncheng, North China's Shanxi Province, which accommodates more than 4.7 million people, issued an appeal on Friday calling on residents aged between 18 and 55 to actively donate blood, as the city needs at least 220 voluntary blood donations per day to meet basic clinical demand. 

The appeal noted that because of the recent rainy and snowy weather, as well as the high incidence of respiratory diseases, the number of blood donations in the city has significantly dropped and many blood banks are facing emergency levels when it comes to blood supplies.  

Yuncheng is not alone in facing a shortfall in blood donors. The Global Times reached the central blood stations in Wuxi, East China's Jiangsu Province, as well as Ningbo in East China's Zhejiang Province, on Monday and both confirmed that local blood banks are experiencing a shortage of inventory.

The Wuxi blood station told the Global Times that due to the current shortage, hospitals are implementing blood control measures to ensure proper distribution.

The central blood station in Weifang, a city in East China's Shandong Province, is also under pressure. It too has appealed to the public, saying that it needs a minimum of 400 blood donations per day to meet clinical demand, including for patients suffering from traumatic bleeding, postpartum hemorrhages, burns, surgical procedures and other situations. 

Winter is the peak season for cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases, which leads to a surge in clinical demand for blood. Another populous city in China, Xinxiang in Central China's Henan Province, called for urgent support after the city's blood inventory fell below a designated warning line, which local officials said severely impacts the ability to provide proper medical treatment to clinical patients and poses a threat to public health.

Based on media reports, at least six other localities across China have issued similar notices to call attention to the issue. 

To cope with the situation, various localities have come up with a number of promotional activities to attract voluntary donors. The Shanghai central blood station told the Global Times on Monday that it has introduced different kinds of promotions on its WeChat account and official website, and is offering volunteer certificates as well as medals to encourage the good deed. 

Since 1998, when the Law of the People's Republic of China on Blood Donation was officially implemented, the number of voluntary blood donations has continuously increased for over 20 years, according to data from the National Health Commission.

The number of voluntary blood donations nationwide has increased by roughly 47 times, from 328,000 in 1998 to more than 15 million in 2020. The blood donation rate per thousand people has also increased from 4.8 in 1998 to 11.1 in 2020.

A WHO global blood safety report shows that China ranks among the top in the world in terms of voluntary blood donations, blood safety and clinical blood use.

However, there is still a persistent shortage of blood in China. For one thing, although the blood donation rate has been on the rise year by year, it is still relatively low compared to developed countries, which stands approximately at 33 per thousand. On the other hand, there has been a fast growing need for blood across China, which has led to a widening gap between supply and demand, according to media reports.

Against this backdrop, a number of institutions have sought to turn what was originally supposed to be a voluntary act of public welfare into a compulsory requirements, which sparked huge controversy among the Chinese public.

According to media reports, a school in Jinhua, East China's Zhejiang Province, recently issued a notice stating that non-local residents wishing to enroll their children in local primary schools must adhere to a points-based system. Apart from accumulating higher points based on the duration of residency, they can also gain points through voluntary blood donations. Each 100ml donation earns 2 points, with a maximum of 30 points achievable through blood donation. 

The decision to include blood donations as a criterion for "entry points" into schools has triggered controversy, with many arguing that this approach lacks rationale, turning voluntary blood donation into a utilitarian tool. Moreover, it pressures non-local residents to donate blood for their children's schooling, disregarding that not everyone is suitable to give blood.

Editor's Note:

The Summer Palace was all white on Monday as Beijing received its first snowfall of the winter season on Sunday. (Photo: Li Hao/GT)

A youth soccer invitation tournament is set to kick off in early October in East China’s Fujian Province, attracting top youth soccer club teams from Germany, the Netherlands, Argentina, and Serbia, as well as top teams within the same bracket from China. During the competition, a forum focused on professional talent development in youth soccer training will also be held.

The inaugural Borussia Dortmund “Hooray Island Cup” youth soccer friendship tournament will take place from October 2 to 9 in Zhangzhou, Fujian Province, the Global Times learned from a press conference held at the Beijing Sport University on Friday.

The tournament is set for the U15 age group, and participating teams will include Germany’s Borussia Dortmund, the Netherlands’ Feyenoord Rotterdam, Argentina’s River Plate, Serbia’s Red Star Belgrade, as well as Chinese teams such as East China’s Zhejiang Province’s representative team and Chinese Football Boy, among others. The tournament has also invited teams from Asian countries such as Vietnam, which has recently made a name for itself in the youth training field.

During the tournament, a forum titled “Focusing on Development, Leading the Future – Chinese Path to Modernization of Youth Soccer Training” will be held on October 4 and 5. The forum will encompass four main themes: The development of domestic and international soccer club youth training systems, the construction of high-level soccer talent development, high-quality youth events, and the integration of professional talent development in soccer academies.

The forum is expected to invite representatives from sport education departments of the General Administration of Sport, the Ministry of Education, and the Chinese Football Association, as well as deans from domestic universities and sports colleges' soccer academies. It will also feature domestic and international soccer experts, scholars, renowned coaches, athletes, and soccer media professionals, all coming together to explore and discuss the development path of youth soccer training in China.

Zhang Jian, Vice President of the Beijing Sport University, emphasized during the meeting that the development of soccer should draw on advanced foreign experiences in youth talent development. It should integrate youth training, high-level play, and career planning based on China’s actual conditions.

Amid the first Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area Chan Buddhism Culture Festival, the exhibition themed “Passing Down Dharma: Nanhua Buddhist Temple in The Past 1500 years,” kicked off at the Nanhua Temple, with a total of 53 pieces of treasured cultural relics showcased for the first time.

This exhibition aims to further strengthen exchanges with the Buddhist community in Guangdong, Hong Kong, Macao and the Belt and Road partner countries to contribute to the construction of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, and to enrich the connotation of the humanistic Bay Area, according to the media report. 

The Northern Qi Dynasty (550-557) bronze statue of the Buddha as the earliest of the numerous artifacts in the collection of Nanhua Temple is also featured at the exhibition. 

Another attraction is the wooden figure of a Buddhist monk, dated Northern Song Dynasty (960-1127). The carving style is thick and simple, and it is an outstanding representative of the existing Northern Song Dynasty wooden carving statues of five hundred Buddhist monks.

Nanhua Temple in Shaoguan, South China’s Guangdong Province, is the birthplace of southern Zen advocated by Mater Huineng (AD638-713), who is highly respected as the Sixth Patriarch of Zen Buddhism.

Built in AD502, the temple preserves many of the national treasures, including the “Da Zang Sutra,” decree and cassock.

One of the most precious relics in the temple is the mummified body of Master Huineng. He sits cross-legged with his eyes closed in the center of the Six Patriarch Hall, and stands about 80 centimeters tall. The mummy is painted reddish brown and sits on a sheet of linen cloth.