China sets target of 4.5-5% GDP growth for this year

The main targets for development in 2026 also include a surveyed urban unemployment rate of around 5.5 percent, over 12 million new urban jobs, an increase in the consumer price index of around 2 percent, growth in personal income in step with economic growth, a basic equilibrium in the balance of payments, and a drop of around 3.8 percent in carbon dioxide emissions per unit of GDP.

The report said that the nation will continue to implement a more proactive fiscal policy, with the deficit-to-GDP ratio for this year set at around 4 percent. The government deficit is set at 5.89 trillion yuan in 2026, which is 230 billion yuan more than last year.

It also said that China will continue to apply an appropriately accommodative monetary policy and maintain adequate liquidity to ensure that aggregate financing and money supply rise in step with projected economic growth and consumer price index levels.

To pursue innovation-led and green development, China projects an annual average increase of at least 7 percent in nationwide R&D spending, and envisages a total reduction of 17 percent in carbon dioxide emissions per unit of GDP between 2026 and 2030, according to the report.

The report laid out key tasks for the government in 2026, pledging to make efforts to build a robust domestic market, foster new growth drivers at a faster pace, and move faster to achieve greater self-reliance and strength in science and technology.

"Taking the expansion of domestic demand as our priority, we should make coordinated efforts to boost consumption and expand investment, tap into every potential for growth in domestic demand, and better leverage the strengths of our enormous market," the report said.

It also said that the country will tap the strengths of the new system for mobilizing resources nationwide to make breakthroughs in core technologies in key fields across entire chains.