A worker grinds a cylinder at the workshop of a high-tech firm in Ruichang, Jiangxi Province, on Oct. 23. Photo: IC PHOTO

During the 14th FYP period, China’s groundbreaking progress, transformative changes, and historic accomplishments in economic and social development have not only injected powerful momentum into the national economy but also laid a solid foundation for long-term development, demonstrating the extraordinary resilience and vitality of the Chinese economy.

High-quality development as defining theme

During the 14th FYP period, China’s economy has achieved notable results in both quantitative expansion and qualitative advancement. The country’s economic aggregate has continued to grow, with cumulative growth over the five years projected to exceed 35 trillion yuan (about $4.9 trillion). China’s contribution to global growth has remained around 30%, reaffirming its position as the world’s most stable and reliable growth engine.

Meanwhile, the country’s economic structure has undergone further optimization and upgrading. Supply-side structural reform has been deepened, accelerating the shift toward innovation-driven growth. Traditional industries have been revitalized and upgraded, emerging industries have flourished more quickly, and the manufacturing sector has become increasingly sophisticated. From 2021 to 2024, the value-added output of large-scale high-tech manufacturing grew by an annual average of 9.2% in real terms, while investment in technological transformation in manufacturing rose at an average annual rate of 8.4%.

Domestic demand has emerged as the primary engine and stabilizing anchor of growth. Over the past four years, it contributed an average of 86.4% to GDP growth, with final consumption accounting for 56.2%—up 8.6 percentage points from the 13th FYP period.

Investment structure has improved as well, as reflected in an average annual growth rate of 13.5% in high-tech investment. More resources have been directed to sectors that address structural weaknesses and enhance long-term growth potential, such as advanced technology and social welfare.

Building on this momentum, a new pattern of coordinated regional development has gradually taken shape. Major regional strategies, including the coordinated development of the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, the growth of the Yangtze River Economic Belt, the construction of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, the integrated development of the Yangtze River Delta, and the ecological protection and high-quality development in the Yellow River Basin, have been advanced and entrenched. The trend toward mutual reinforcement between eastern and western regions, collaboration between north and south, and coordinated land-sea development has become increasingly evident. The latecomer advantages of the central and western regions have been steadily leveraged, with their combined share of national GDP rising to 42.9% in 2024.

China’s urban-rural integration strategy has also advanced across the board. People-centered new urbanization has been expedited, with the urbanization rate of the permanent resident population reaching 67% by the end of 2024, up 3.11 percentage points from the end of 2020. Moreover, the effective linkage between poverty alleviation achievements and rural revitalization has been further consolidated, as the disposable income ratio between urban and rural residents narrowed from 2.56 in 2020 to 2.34 in 2024. Agriculture has been further strengthened, enhancing the capacity to secure food and other key agricultural products. Rural construction initiatives have been widely implemented, improving the living environment and boosting governance efficiency in the countryside.

Breakthroughs in innovation

Throughout the 14th FYP period, China has consistently placed innovation at the heart of its modernization drive, achieving a steady stream of new breakthroughs. Consequently, innovation has become a core force propelling high-quality development.

Investment in research and development (R&D) has reached record highs, with total national expenditure exceeding 3.6 trillion yuan in 2024, consolidating China’s status as the world’s second-largest R&D spender. The drive toward greater self-reliance and strength in science and technology has accelerated, while the research capabilities of top universities and institutions have continued to grow. Enterprises have played an increasingly pivotal role in innovation, with talent-driven innovation further strengthening their impact, supported by more than 5 million STEM graduates each year. China now ranks first globally in both the total number of scientific and technological personnel and R&D staff.

In 2025, China has risen to the 10th place in the Global Innovation Index, up four places from 2020, maintaining a leading position among middle-income economies. The number of top 100 innovation clusters has ranked first worldwide, marking China’s transition from a global manufacturing hub into a global innovation center.

Complementing these achievements, high-quality scientific and technological achievements have been rapidly translated into practical applications. Many key technological “chokepoints” have been overcome, significantly enhancing the autonomy and controllability of industrial and supply chains. By 2024, annual integrated circuit production had risen 72.6% from the end of the 13th FYP period, with more products incorporating “China-made chips.” Breakthroughs have also occurred in nuclear power, high-speed rail, shipbuilding, and marine engineering equipment.

Since the start of the 14th FYP, more than 100,000 specialized, sophisticated, distinctive, and innovative small and medium-sized enterprises have emerged, forming over 60 national advanced manufacturing clusters in emerging industries. The deep integration of the digital and real economies has been strengthened by the world’s largest and most extensive network infrastructure. Key industrial internet platforms have connected over 100 million devices, robustly bolstering the widespread application of digital and intelligent technologies.

People’s wellbeing improving

During the 14th FYP period, China has remained committed to its people-centered development philosophy, prioritizing the improvement of living standards and public welfare as both the starting point and ultimate goal of development. The country has earnestly addressed the most pressing concerns of the population, ensuring that the fruits of development become more widely shared and equitably distributed.

Efforts to strengthen the foundation of people’s livelihoods have been intensified through sustained employment and income-boosting policies. The employment-first approach has been comprehensively reinforced, generating over 12 million new urban jobs annually. In addition, robust economic performance and stable employment have effectively boosted household incomes. National per capita disposable income climbed from 32,000 yuan in 2020 to 41,000 yuan in 2024, growing by an average of 5.5% annually. The quality of life for urban and rural residents has continued to improve, as reflected in the upgrading of durable consumer goods. For example, the number of passenger cars per 100 households increased from 37.1 in 2020 to 51.2 in 2024.

China has also built the world’s largest basic public service and healthcare systems. The retention rate for compulsory education and the coverage of basic pension and basic medical insurance has each exceeded 95%. In 2024, enrollment rates across all levels of education reached or surpassed the average for upper-middle-income countries, while the average years of schooling for new entrants to the labor force exceeded 14 years.

Moreover, a total of 402 new medicines have been added to the national medical insurance drug list, and cross-provincial settlement of medical expenses has benefited over 400 million people. The development of a high-quality care system for both the elderly and children has accelerated: The proportion of nursing care beds for the elderly has reached 64.6%, and comprehensive childcare service centers have been established in more than 300 prefecture-level cities and populous counties.

Wu Chao is a research fellow from the Institute of Contemporary China Studies at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.