Xinhua
20 Oct 2026

BEIJING, Oct. 20 (Xinhua) -- Official data released Monday showed China's gross domestic product (GDP) grew 4.6 percent year on year in the first three quarters of this year, as the economy maintained steady growth under pressure and continued shifting toward new growth drivers.

International observers said China's resilience, innovation-driven development and continued opening up are helping it navigate external uncertainty while creating opportunities for the global economy.

SUSTAINING GROWTH AMID GLOBAL HEADWINDS

Conflicts in the Middle East, energy shocks, financial risks, tariff barriers and extreme weather have heightened global uncertainty. Yet China's economy continued to expand, with GDP rising 4.5 percent year on year in the third quarter, up from 4.3 percent in the second quarter.

According to data from China's National Bureau of Statistics, the economy added 5.7 trillion yuan (about 851.9 billion U.S. dollars) in output in the January-September period, the largest increase for the same period in five years. In September, value-added industrial output rose 5.5 percent year on year, the services production index increased 4.8 percent and retail sales grew 1.1 percent.

Rhys Roberts, national president and chair of the Australia China Business Council, told Xinhua that the figures demonstrated "the resilience of its (China's) economy amid global uncertainty."

"The figures provide grounds for confidence that China can achieve its full-year growth target of 4.5 to 5 percent," Roberts said.

China is less vulnerable than some countries with comparable debt levels, said Rodrigo Valdes, director of the International Monetary Fund's (IMF's) Fiscal Affairs Department.

"In particular, China has many assets, some of them liquid. The financial account, or the balance of payments, is not fully open, and that also cautions against big movements of capital," Valdes said.

China also pays relatively low interest rates compared with other countries and has a high savings rate, he said. "All these factors, I would say, help reduce the risks."

"Sustaining growth within the 4-to-5-percent range reflects the strength of China's economic foundations, the diversity of its industrial base, and its capacity to adapt to changing domestic and international conditions," said Jackson Kagobora, head of the Department of Economics at Kigali Independent University.

"China's experience demonstrates that resilience is not simply about withstanding external shocks, but also about continuously adapting, innovating and creating new opportunities for development," Kagobora added.

INNOVATING FOR GROWTH

From coffee-delivery drones and wireless phone charging at bus stops to wearable exoskeletons for Great Wall visitors, new technologies are making innovation in China visible in everyday life. High-end manufacturing, the digital economy and modern services are also emerging as key growth drivers.

"Structural optimization and dynamic transition represent the most prominent highlights at this stage," said Christine Susanna Tjhin, director of strategic communication and research at Indonesia's Gentala Institute.

"Modern services, the digital economy and high-end manufacturing have emerged as the primary growth engines ... these new growth drivers contributed over 40 percent to economic expansion in the first half of the year," she said, adding that the shift reflects progress in fostering new quality productive forces.

Simphiwe Madikizela, a professor at the University of South Africa's Graduate School of Business and Leadership, said the shift toward innovation-driven growth marks a structural change in China's development model.

"The focus is increasingly on improving productivity, technological capability and the value of goods and services produced, rather than depending exclusively on the expansion of conventional manufacturing capacity," Madikizela said.

Trade in industrial robots, electronic components, computer parts and electrical equipment exceeded 10 trillion yuan in the first three quarters, up 58.9 percent year on year and contributing 11.3 percentage points to overall trade growth, according to China's General Administration of Customs.

Integrated circuit exports surged 99.1 percent year on year during the period. Exports of electric vehicles, lithium batteries, and wind power generating sets and their parts rose 72.3 percent, 36.4 percent and 22.4 percent, respectively.

Michael Schumann, chairman of the board of the German Federal Association for Economic Development and Foreign Trade, said visits to China have given him a firsthand view of the country's industrial dynamism.

"The level of automation and production efficiency was truly impressive," Schumann said while recalling his tour at Xiaomi's electric-vehicle factory in Beijing. "China's dynamic innovation environment is like a 'fitness room' for foreign companies, allowing them to test their capabilities, adapt to new developments and strengthen their competitiveness."

EXPANDING GLOBAL LINKS

China's goods trade with 169 countries and regions rose 18.8 percent year on year to 39.94 trillion yuan in the first three quarters, with trade up 27.5 percent in September alone.

Since May 1, China has extended zero-tariff treatment to all 53 African countries with which it has diplomatic relations, bringing the total number of countries covered by its zero-tariff measures to 63. Imports from these countries reached 867.53 billion yuan in the first three quarters, up 15.3 percent year on year. China has been the world's second-largest import market for 17 consecutive years.

These figures "reflect China's extensive integration into the global economy and its importance as both a major supplier and a significant market for goods from around the world," said Kagobora, from Kigali Independent University.

China's "continued commitment to opening up, diversifying trade partnerships and facilitating market access contributes to international economic stability by supporting the movement of goods, sustaining production networks and creating opportunities for businesses across different regions," he added.

Thomas Helbling, deputy director of the IMF's Asia and Pacific Department, said China is making efforts to uphold a multilateral, rules-based trading system.

He said Chinese companies can play an important role in disseminating new technologies and supporting their application through outbound investment.

China's trade with countries under the Belt and Road cooperation reached 20.37 trillion yuan, up 17.1 percent year on year. Chinese companies have established more than 50,000 overseas enterprises, nearly 90 percent of them in countries of the Global South.

China's role in the Global South has been invaluable for economic development, said Lawrence Freeman, a U.S. political-economic analyst specializing in Africa with more than 30 years of experience in African economic development policy.

Freeman said the Belt and Road cooperation has helped attract much-needed infrastructure investment across the developing world, including power-generation facilities, railways, ports and airports in Africa.

"We must recognize that the future of the planet lies in the development of the Global South," Freeman said.