Opinion

China has the capability and the will to become the world’s market

From the Davos Forum to press conferences held by the State Council Information Office, China is sending a clear message to the world: against the backdrop of a sluggish global economic recovery and undercurrents of trade protectionism, China is not only willing to remain the world’s factory but also has the capability and the will to become the world’s market.

China’s capability to become the world’s market stems from the scale and vitality of its super-large market. With a population of over 1.4 billion, including more than 400 million middle-income earners, and a per capita GDP exceeding USD 13,000, China’s vast population base combined with steadily rising income levels has fostered diverse and robust consumer demand, creating a unique and unparalleled market potential. Moreover, as China advances reforms, including the release of an updated negative list for market access and the implementation of laws to promote the private sector, its market’s growth potential is limitless, offering countless opportunities.

China’s willingness to become the world’s market is demonstrated through its unwavering commitment to openness and pragmatic measures. Opening-up is a fundamental state policy for China, rooted not only in a profound understanding of the historical trend of economic globalization but also in the active practice of the vision of a community with a shared future for mankind. In recent years, China has translated its commitment to openness into tangible global benefits through institutional arrangements and landmark platforms. Practical measures such as the China International Import Expo, the expansion of pilot free trade zones, the development of cross-border e-commerce comprehensive pilot zones, and the deepening of Belt and Road economic and trade cooperation have consistently unleashed the dividends of the Chinese market.

Capability and willingness complement each other, highlighting the unlimited potential of China as the world’s market. The super-large market provides stable demand for the world, while sustained openness transforms this demand into opportunities for development across countries. China’s own experience demonstrates that only open markets can be vibrant, and only shared opportunities hold true value. In the future, China will further expand its opening-up with greater determination, making its super-large market a vast stage for the common development of all nations.

Policy

1. The Chinese mainland will soon resume tourism by Shanghai residents to Kinmen and Matsu. The resumption is intended to further normalize cross-Strait people-to-people exchanges and make exchanges across various fields a regular practice, respond to the strong expectations of Taiwan residents and the tourism industry, and enhance the well-being of people on both sides of the Strait, the Ministry of Culture and Tourism announced on Feb 4.

2. Recently, the National Standardization Administration approved and released 403 national standards, covering emerging fields, safety production, and daily life, among other areas. Among them, five national standards, such as those for brain-computer interfaces and digital twins, will significantly reduce development and construction costs for enterprises, providing a scientific pathway for the application and continuous iteration of cutting-edge technologies.

Data

1. China's grain output has remained stable at over 700 million tonnes for two consecutive years, reaching 714.9 million tonnes in 2025, with both total output and yield per unit hitting record highs.

2. Online retail sales in China's rural areas reached RMB 3 trillion in 2025, and online retail sales of agricultural products totaled RMB 783.31 billion, up 6.7 percent and 9.9 percent year-on-year, respectively.

3. China’s per capita service-related consumption grew at an average annual rate of 8.5 percent from 2020 to 2025, demonstrating strong growth momentum. Its share in per capita household consumption expenditure rose by 3.5 percentage points, reaching 46.1 percent in 2025.

4. Efforts have been made in China to foster an environment conducive to boosting consumption, with RMB 8.6 billion in initial fiscal support funds allocated to pilot cities for nurturing new scenarios and forms of consumption, according to the Ministry of Commerce.

5. China now boasts 15 world natural heritage sites and four mixed cultural and natural heritage sites, ranking first in terms of the total number, according to a report released by the National Forestry and Grassland Administration.

6. China's foreign exchange reserves totaled USD 3.3991 trillion at the end of January 2026, marking an increase of USD 41.2 billion, or 1.23 percent, from the end of December last year, the data from the State Administration of Foreign Exchange showed.

7. In 2025, a total of 350 million service applications were carried out on farmlands under the agricultural socialized service by China's supply and marketing cooperative system, including formula fertilization, unified pest control, and agricultural machinery operations. Such service has effectively promoted cost reduction and efficiency gains in agriculture as well as stable and increased grain production.

8. According to tax invoice data from the State Taxation Administration, through integrating technological and industrial innovation, China recorded a year-on-year increase of 13.9 percent of sales revenue in high-tech industries in 2025, and sales revenue in the lithium-ion battery, integrated circuit, and bio-pharmaceutical manufacturing sectors grew by 25.1 percent, 19.2 percent, and 7.7 percent, respectively.

9. China's 10 top provincial regions by gross domestic product (GDP) accounted for 62.2 percent of the country's overall economic growth in 2025, according to recent data released by all such regions. The 10 top-performing regions, including Guangdong, Jiangsu and Shandong, recorded a year-on-year GDP growth of 5.1 percent and helped boost the national growth rate by 3.1 percentage points.

10. China's logistics sector maintained steady growth in 2025. According to data from the China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing, social logistics volume exceeded RMB 368 trillion, with total revenue of the logistics industry reaching RMB 14.3 trillion, a year-on-year increase of 4.1 percent.

(Source: Economic Daily)