Australia's major cinema chain Hoyts has increased screenings of "Ne Zha 2", China's highest grossing animated film so far, by 22 percent starting Tuesday, to meet the growing audience demand.
Since its release in Australia in February, the animated film, a sequel to the 2019 hit featuring a mythical boy with magical powers and exceptional martial arts skills, has been enjoying strong box office success. It continued to dominate the box office on Monday at Hoyts, Australia's second-largest cinema chain, surpassing popular films such as Captain America: Civil War and securing the top spot.
Local audiences have embraced the sequel, praising its humor, animation quality, and storytelling.
"I really like the first version of it, and the second was great as well. It's a lot funnier, [with] a lot more comedy. The animation, the detail is a lot more impressive than you'd normally see," said Tom, a local audience member.
Chris, another local viewer, appreciated the film's adaptation of historical legends into a modern context.
"I like that there is like [a] historical context. So [it's] like proper legends and [that are] then turned into a modern context. That's really nice. I like how it's like sort of good and bad characters that take control over their own fate and work together. That's really nice too," he said.
Alex Hadlow, a location manager at Hoyts Cinemas, acknowledged the growing influence of Chinese films in the Australian market.
"I think we can't overlook the power of the film industry from China and how the growing popularity for the films from China. Personally, I enjoy a lot of Chinese films. So, I'm excited for what the future holds," he said.
"Ne Zha 2" has become the first non-Hollywood film to exceed 2 billion U.S. dollars in global earnings, including presales, according to data from Chinese ticketing platform Maoyan.
Chinese animated blockbuster sees rising popularity in Australia
Foreign diplomats and scholars are looking closely at this year's "two sessions", saying China's 15th Five-Year Plan (2026-2030) will not only chart the nation's economic and technological priorities but also reshape global value chains.
The fourth session of the 14th National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), the nation's top political advisory body, opened on Wednesday, followed by the annual session of the National People's Congress (NPC) on Thursday. Together known as the "two sessions," these meetings offer a comprehensive view into China's development priorities.
Global observers emphasized that the 15th Five-Year Plan, a blueprint guiding the nation's economic, social, and technological priorities over the next five years, marks a decisive shift toward high‑quality growth anchored in advanced technologies, with ripple effects across the world.
"The two sessions will discuss China's five-year plan, which is heavily oriented toward China's major technological development. I believe this is important because it represents the new blueprint for China's economy, which is now oriented toward the renowned high-quality development, and this will undoubtedly impact the entire world. I think it is worth studying. This is very important for Latin America. It will help us integrate more intelligently into global value chains and into all aspects of the major development that China is promoting in iconic industrial sectors, such as artificial intelligence, quantum computing, and space development, where Latin America also has much to contribute beyond just commercial growth," said Gustavo Sabino Vaca Narvaja, former Argentine Ambassador to China.
"The two sessions are a major political milestone in China, and this year's gathering carries even greater significance as this year marks the start of the 15th Five-Year Plan. This plan represents not only a blueprint for China, but also a guide for other countries. Instruments like the five-year plan effectively provide greater certainty and predictability for the rest of the world," said Chilean scholar of international relations Ignacio Araya Heredia.
"This is a particularly important date, especially due to the fact that the next Five-Year Plan shall be positioned and we're going to see what its main elements shall be. Serbia, which has a very high degree of steel friendship with the People's Republic of China, can expect further assistance in identifying the most prominent areas of Serbian economy and being helped by its great partner, such as it has been done in the previous period, from one part with establishing the main infrastructure projects, but also reshaping the industrial sector of Serbia, not just Serbia, but the region as a whole," said Veljko Mijuskovic, assistant professor of the Faculty of Economics of the University of Belgrade.
Beyond the policy framework, experts also pointed to China's achievements in green energy and technological innovation as models worth emulating.
Tomasz Bielinski, adjunct professor at the University of Gdansk's Faculty of Economics, said the robotics displays at the 2026 China Media Group (CMG) Spring Festival Gala reflected China's broader push in technological innovation.
"I was really impressed about the robotics. I'm very impressed with Chinese development in the technological field, we can still make great deals with Chinese businessmen and we can cooperate together to use this technology for both the good of China and the European Union. I'm aware of the innovation especially in autonomous drive on the on the Chinese side," he said.
"We hope for more of China's economic cooperation, especially in trade and also in investment. Also, and the other focus, if I talk about the focus of the development, don't forget about the green energy. We know that China is great in the electric vehicle field. So because China's electric vehicles in Indonesia nowadays, since couple of years ago, are very, very popular," said Al Busyra Basnur, president of the Indonesia-China Friendship Association.
Observers see China's new five-year plan driving high-quality development, global tech shifts
