Specialist Claims: China's Economy Is Stabilizing With Promising Long-Term Outlook
China's economy showed resilience with consistent progress, as production demands continued to bounce back. Employment and prices stayed largely stable, while new growth drivers were actively cultivated and enhanced, leading to significant strides in high-quality development.
TroibNews 
Editor's note: Zhu Fangfei is a researcher and director at the Research Department of the Institute for Public Policy of Zhejiang University. The article reflects the author's opinions and not necessarily the views of CN.
The National Bureau of Statistics unveiled a series of economic metrics for July on August 15. The data revealed that the added value of industrial enterprises above a designated size increased by 5.1 percent compared to the same period last year; consumer goods retail sales hit 3.7757 trillion yuan, marking a 2.7 percent year-on-year increase; and the total import and export value of goods rose by 6.5 percent year-on-year. The economic landscape showed stability and consistent progress, with sustained recovery in production and demand, stable employment and prices, and ongoing nurturing and expansion of new engines for growth, all contributing to robust high-quality development.
In July, the economy exhibited stable growth, with an accumulation of positive elements.
Stability was maintained in production and supply sectors. The industrial manufacturing sector saw robust growth, particularly in equipment and high-tech manufacturing. Specifically, the added value in industrial enterprises above the designated size saw a slight dip to a 5.1 percent increase year-on-year, with a 0.35 percent month-on-month growth. The value added in equipment manufacturing rose by 7.3 percent, while high-tech manufacturing saw a 10.0 percent increase, both higher than the previous month by 0.4 and 1.2 percentage points respectively. The service sector also showed signs of recovery, with modern services performing strongly. The Index of Services Production grew by 4.8 percent year-on-year in July, slightly outpacing the growth from the previous month. Notably, information transmission, software, and information technology services expanded by 12.6 percent, and leasing and business services grew by 9.0 percent year-on-year, both significantly outperforming the general service production index.
Domestic and international market demands saw continued expansion. On the domestic front, retail sales of consumer goods reached 3.78 trillion yuan, growing by 2.7 percent year-on-year, an increase from the previous month. Regarding foreign trade, the growth in demand persisted. The total value of imports and exports for July was 3.68 trillion yuan, a 6.5 percent increase from the previous year, with exports and imports each experiencing growth.
Trade volume reached a record high for the period, according to customs data. In the first seven months of the year, the total value of imports and exports was 24.83 trillion yuan, a 6.2 percent rise year-on-year, with a notably expanding trade surplus.
Continuous promotion and expansion of new growth drivers were evident from January to July. Investment in fixed assets, excluding rural households, was 28.76 trillion yuan, up 3.6 percent year-on-year; excluding real estate development, the growth was 8.0 percent. High-tech sectors, including manufacturing and services, saw significant increases in investments, particularly in advanced fields such as aviation, space, and equipment manufacturing, as well as professional technical and e-commerce services.
The employment situation remained generally solid. The average surveyed urban unemployment rate from January to July was 5.1 percent, an improvement from the previous year. In July, the nationwide urban unemployment rate saw a slight monthly increase but was lower than the previous year.
Price stabilization and recovery continued into July. The national consumer price index (CPI) increased by 0.5 percent year-on-year, with nearly all categories seeing price increases. The core CPI, excluding food and energy, rose by 0.4 percent year-on-year over the first seven months.
Overall, the robust economic data for July underscore the strong, solid foundation and resilience of China's economy, bolstering confidence in its long-term positive outlook.
Ian Smith for TROIB News
The National Bureau of Statistics unveiled a series of economic metrics for July on August 15. The data revealed that the added value of industrial enterprises above a designated size increased by 5.1 percent compared to the same period last year; consumer goods retail sales hit 3.7757 trillion yuan, marking a 2.7 percent year-on-year increase; and the total import and export value of goods rose by 6.5 percent year-on-year. The economic landscape showed stability and consistent progress, with sustained recovery in production and demand, stable employment and prices, and ongoing nurturing and expansion of new engines for growth, all contributing to robust high-quality development.
In July, the economy exhibited stable growth, with an accumulation of positive elements.
Stability was maintained in production and supply sectors. The industrial manufacturing sector saw robust growth, particularly in equipment and high-tech manufacturing. Specifically, the added value in industrial enterprises above the designated size saw a slight dip to a 5.1 percent increase year-on-year, with a 0.35 percent month-on-month growth. The value added in equipment manufacturing rose by 7.3 percent, while high-tech manufacturing saw a 10.0 percent increase, both higher than the previous month by 0.4 and 1.2 percentage points respectively. The service sector also showed signs of recovery, with modern services performing strongly. The Index of Services Production grew by 4.8 percent year-on-year in July, slightly outpacing the growth from the previous month. Notably, information transmission, software, and information technology services expanded by 12.6 percent, and leasing and business services grew by 9.0 percent year-on-year, both significantly outperforming the general service production index.
Domestic and international market demands saw continued expansion. On the domestic front, retail sales of consumer goods reached 3.78 trillion yuan, growing by 2.7 percent year-on-year, an increase from the previous month. Regarding foreign trade, the growth in demand persisted. The total value of imports and exports for July was 3.68 trillion yuan, a 6.5 percent increase from the previous year, with exports and imports each experiencing growth.
Trade volume reached a record high for the period, according to customs data. In the first seven months of the year, the total value of imports and exports was 24.83 trillion yuan, a 6.2 percent rise year-on-year, with a notably expanding trade surplus.
Continuous promotion and expansion of new growth drivers were evident from January to July. Investment in fixed assets, excluding rural households, was 28.76 trillion yuan, up 3.6 percent year-on-year; excluding real estate development, the growth was 8.0 percent. High-tech sectors, including manufacturing and services, saw significant increases in investments, particularly in advanced fields such as aviation, space, and equipment manufacturing, as well as professional technical and e-commerce services.
The employment situation remained generally solid. The average surveyed urban unemployment rate from January to July was 5.1 percent, an improvement from the previous year. In July, the nationwide urban unemployment rate saw a slight monthly increase but was lower than the previous year.
Price stabilization and recovery continued into July. The national consumer price index (CPI) increased by 0.5 percent year-on-year, with nearly all categories seeing price increases. The core CPI, excluding food and energy, rose by 0.4 percent year-on-year over the first seven months.
Overall, the robust economic data for July underscore the strong, solid foundation and resilience of China's economy, bolstering confidence in its long-term positive outlook.
Ian Smith for TROIB News
