Shanghai sets ambitious economic and development goals for 2026

Shanghai has set its economic growth target for this year at approximately 5 percent, with research and development spending projected to account for about 4.6 percent of the city's total GDP, said Gong Zheng, mayor of Shanghai, on Tuesday.

The growth of residents' per capita disposable income will align closely with economic growth, while consumer price increases are anticipated to be around 2 percent, Gong stated while delivering the Shanghai Municipal Government Work Report at the annual session of the Shanghai Municipal People's Congress, the city's legislative body.

The report outlines significant infrastructure investments totaling 255 billion yuan ($36.74 billion) this year. Key projects include the initiation of the south-north corridor construction and the advancement of major projects, such as the second phase of the Shanghai section of the Shanghai-Nantong railway and the Shanghai section of the Shanghai-Chongqing-Chengdu high-speed railway.

In his explanation of the draft outline of the city's 15th Five-Year Plan (2026-30), Gong emphasized the major objectives for Shanghai's economic and social developments through 2030. The plan aims for significant achievements in high-quality development, breakthroughs in high-level reform and opening-up, an enhanced level of social civilization, continuous deepening of the construction of a people-centered city, and substantial improvements in urban governance modernization.

Looking ahead to 2035, the draft envisions a comprehensive upgrade of Shanghai's function as an international center for economy, finance, trade, shipping, and scientific and technological innovation, with key development indicators reaching international levels.

The city's capacity and core competitiveness are expected to improve significantly by 2035, with the per capita GDP doubling from the 2020 levels, thereby establishing Shanghai as a world-influential socialist modern international metropolis, said Gong.