Opinion

Proactive and impactful macroeconomic policies deliver effective results

China has implemented proactive macro policies to keep growth, employment, and expectations stable this year, through measures such as expanding cost-effective investment, launching special initiatives to boost consumption, and maintaining ample liquidity with reasonable growth in financial aggregates. Moving forward, China will implement more proactive and impactful macroeconomic policies, playing a more prominent role in safeguarding economic operations and providing momentum.

More proactive and impactful macroeconomic policies represent a strategic effort to enhance counter-cyclical adjustments and better address uncertainties and instabilities in economic performance. Since the beginning of this year, a series of robust, substantive, and targeted policy measures have been implemented, effectively stabilizing expectations, stimulating dynamism, and boosting confidence.

With intensifying policy implementation, the shift from "proactive" to "more proactive" fiscal policy has continued to deliver sustained and enhanced effects. This year, the deficit-to-GDP ratio is set at around 4 percent, an increase of one percentage point from the previous year. Measures such as ultra-long-term special treasury bonds, local government special bonds, and central budget investments have been coordinated and utilized effectively, with government investments increasingly focused on key sectors and areas requiring reinforcement. Meanwhile, the shift in monetary policy from "prudent" to "appropriately accommodative" leverages both aggregate and structural functions, employing a comprehensive toolkit including reserve requirement ratio cuts, open market operations, medium-term lending facilities, and relending and rediscounting to maintain ample liquidity in the banking system.

At the same time, investment in human capital, a major strategic initiative with long-term national significance, has become a defining feature of macroeconomic policies. Efforts have been made to combine measures to improve people's livelihoods with consumption expansion, emphasizing job creation to raise incomes and continuously enhancing social security. Additionally, steps such as establishing childcare subsidy systems, progressively implementing free preschool education, and advancing the development of an inclusive childcare service system reflect the country's increased investment in fostering well-rounded human development through substantial financial commitments.

Policy

1. The National Development and Reform Commission allocated RMB 6 billion from the central budget for the program of employment as a form of poverty relief in the fourth batch of 2025 recently, bringing the total annual central investment to RMB 35.5 billion. This initiative is expected to provide employment opportunities for over 1.1 million low-income individuals in their local areas.

2. The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology released guidelines aimed at advancing digital transformation in key industries through scenario-based and roadmap-driven approaches on December 8. Focusing on 14 industries, including steel and petrochemicals, the guidelines provide enterprises with a scenario navigation map for digital transformation, facilitating the shift of the manufacturing sector's digital transformation from fragmented exploration to systematic advancement.

Data

1. According to customs statistics, in the first 10 months of 2025, China's exports of agro-products reached nearly RMB 600 billion, covering 838 categories and being exported to 223 countries and regions.

2. Recent data from the China Federation of Logistics & Purchasing shows that during the "14th Five-Year Plan" period, China's food ingredient industry has steadily expanded in scale, demonstrating robust growth overall. By 2025, the market size of food ingredient consumption is expected to exceed RMB 10 trillion.

3. The latest data from the China Futures Association reveals that from January to November, the national futures market recorded a cumulative trading volume of 81.17 billion lots with a cumulative turnover of RMB 675.45 trillion, representing year-on-year increases of 14.74 percent and 20.19 percent, respectively.

4. As of December 6, Beijing Daxing International Airport has handled a total of 322,500 inbound and outbound flights this year, serving 50,083,400 inbound and outbound passengers. This marks the first time since its opening that the airport's annual passenger throughput has exceeded 50 million.

5. From January to October this year, the total import and export value of the Shenzhen Qianhai Cooperation Zone reached RMB 612.45 billion, a year-on-year increase of 4.5 percent. Exports amounted to RMB 307.72 billion, growing by 10.7 percent year-on-year, both setting new historical highs for the same period. This has injected strong momentum into the high-quality economic development and high-level opening-up of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.

6. The latest value-added tax invoice data shows that in the first 11 months, the sales revenue of the computer and communication equipment manufacturing industry and the instrument and meter manufacturing industry increased by 12.3 percent and 10.3 percent year-on-year, respectively, indicating accelerated advancement in the high-end development of the manufacturing sector.

7. On December 8, the world's first test run of a 35,000-ton heavy-haul train group was successfully conducted on the Baoshen Railway in Inner Mongolia. This marks the first time globally that multiple freight trains have achieved coordinated operation without mechanical coupling, relying solely on wireless signals.

8. China's first intelligent and autonomous operation control system for gas turbine power generation was recently put into operation, signifying that China's thermal power generation technology has transitioned from the "traditional manual monitoring" phase to a new stage of "intelligent autonomous operation."

9. China recently passed the certification process under the United Nations International Search and Rescue Advisory Group (INSARAG), becoming the 10th country globally to obtain this certification. This achievement indicates that China's urban search and rescue system has reached advanced international standards.

10. According to the State Taxation Administration, from January to November, the sales revenue of China's high-tech industries increased by 14.7 percent year-on-year. During the same period, tax reductions, fee cuts, and tax refunds under the current policies supporting technological innovation and the manufacturing sector exceeded RMB 2.37 trillion.

(Source: Economic Daily)