China announces lowest growth target in decades

Flag of China. Maxim Shemetov/Reuters China has set an economic growth target of between 4.5% and 5% for this year — the lowest in decades —, considered central in the country’s strategy to face the weakening of domestic consumption and the crisis in the real estate sector. Beijing also took advantage of its traditional annual political meeting, known as the “Two Sessions”, to announce a 7% increase in the defense budget, the second largest in the world. 🗒️Do you have any reporting suggestions? Send to g1 The measure seeks to balance the military influence of the United States and reinforce Chinese territorial claims over Taiwan and the South China Sea. With this, the country must allocate 1.9 trillion yuan (US$276.8 billion or approximately R$1.4 trillion) to the armed forces. Still, the amount corresponds to approximately one third of the United States military budget. See the trending videos on g1 See the trending videos on g1 🔎China is the second largest economy in the world and accounts for around a third of global growth. Even with robust exports, the country faces structural imbalances and commercial pressures from Washington. “Last year’s achievements were very difficult to achieve,” said Prime Minister Li Qiang when opening, on Thursday morning (5), the annual session of the National People’s Congress (NPC), the Chinese Parliament. “We have rarely faced such a complex scenario, in which external challenges were added to internal difficulties and required difficult political decisions,” he added. According to an AFP analysis, the announced growth target is the lowest since 1991. The only exception was 2020, when Beijing failed to set an official target due to the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the economy. Goals for development Thousands of parliamentarians and leaders from across the country gathered at the Great Hall of the People, in Beijing, for the meeting, planned with great rigor and closely monitored by President Xi Jinping. During the meeting, bills and reforms will be approved, which, to a large extent, have already been previously defined by the leadership of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). For analysts, the event functions mainly as a formalization of political decisions already taken. The Chinese government argues that the country’s growth model needs to move away from traditional drivers, such as exports and manufacturing, and become more dependent on domestic consumption. Among the economic goals for 2026 are also consumer inflation of around 2% and an increase in the population’s income at a pace similar to that of economic expansion, according to a report presented by Li. The Chinese economy has been gradually slowing down in recent years, as the country matures as an economic power. Even so, the strong performance of exports helped the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) to grow 5% in 2025. The country also recorded a record trade surplus of US$1.2 trillion (around R$6.2 trillion), despite months of trade tensions with the United States. During the “Two Sessions”, Beijing must also present its 15th Five-Year Plan, which will establish development guidelines until 2030. The plan must prioritize technological advances in areas such as artificial intelligence, high-tech industry and energy and resource security.

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