Chinese President Xi Jinping's New Year address has resonated deeply with people from all walks of life in China, inspiring them to work hard in the coming year and contribute to the country's overall development.
Xi, also general secretary of Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, delivered his 2026 message on new year's eve, in which he looked back over the past year and extended New Year wishes for the coming year.
"In his New Year's address, President Xi Jinping mentioned attending the celebrations marking the 70th anniversary of the founding of the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. I was there too, as a grassroots participant. I was deeply moved that President Xi remembered and feel concerned about people in Xinjiang in his New Year's address. This year, the number of tourists visiting the Xinjiang grand bazaar has exceeded 30 million, setting a record high. We hope that the tourism in Xinjiang grand bazaar can see an all year-round peak, and we wish to see a integrated development of our culture, ecology, and winter sports," said Wang Na, deputy director of Culture, Sports and Tourism Bureau in Tianshan District, Urumqi City.
"The Hainan Free Trade Port (FTP) has ushered in a new chapter. With the offshore duty-free shopping as a well-established brand name of the FTP, we are not only witnesses but also builders in this endeavor. In the new year, we will improve our services and create new experiences, and make a greater contribution to the construction of the Hainan FTP," said Kuang Jiaojiao, staff member of Haikou International Duty Free City.
In the New Year address, President Xi mentioned that the cultural and tourism sectors thrived in 2025, with cultural IPs such as Wukong and Nezha became global hits. The younger generation came to deem classic Chinese culture as the finest form of aesthetic expression.
"President Xi mentioned the growing interest in culture and intangible cultural heritages. I'm an inheritor of traditional food of Zhengding County, and I think that intangible cultural heritages should be properly passed down. I'll make high quality traditional food so that people can experience a more vibrant local atmosphere," said Wang Heng, intangible cultural heritage inheritor in Zhengding, north China's Hebei Province. "Cultural IPs like Wukong and Nezha get popular worldwide, and traditional Chinese style becomes a top popular trend among young people. We, as members of post-00s generation, also watched the movies like 'Nezha 2' and 'Nobody' [a spinoff from the acclaimed Yao-Chinese Folktales animation series]. They are indeed exquisitely produced, with a lot of traditional Chinese elements. They give us a stronger sense of identity with and pride in Chinese traditional culture now," said Wang Jia'ni, a resident in southwest China's Chongqing Municipality.
"President Xi mentioned that cultural and tourism sectors thrived. The 'super league' football games in our cities and villages attracted numerous fans.' I felt very heart-warming and encouraged to hear this. Tourism in Guizhou also boomed in 2025, and I just returned from a roadside concert, which was terrific and filled me with happiness and a sense of gain," said Liu Guohong, resident in Guiyang City in southwest China's Guizhou Province.
"There is strong festive atmosphere in my city, as it will be one of the four sub-venues for 2026 Spring Festival Gala. My paper-cutting includes elements of Hefei -- a quantum satellite representing technological innovation, new energy vehicles representing our industrial development, and theatrical characters representing the opera-themed activities in Anhui. Anhui always welcomes visitors across the world," said Ding Jian, intangible cultural heritage inheritor in east China's Anhui Province.
President Xi stressed that the year 2026 marks the beginning of the 15th Five-Year Plan, and China should take solid steps to promote high-quality development, and further deepen reform and opening up across the board.
"We are building up the Pinglu Canal, which is a key project of the New Western Land-Sea Corridor. The project has entered its final stage. We will continue to spare no efforts to ensure its completion in 2026, turning the grand vision of connecting rivers and the sea and strengthening maritime power into a reality," said Cheng Yaofei, head of Pinglu Canal construction command.
Over the past year, ice and snow sports ignited people's passion for the winter season, which was also mentioned by President Xi in his New Year address.
"In 2025, Harbin successfully hosted the 9th Asian Winter Games, which greatly inspired people's enthusiasm for participating in ice and snow sports. Now, tens of thousands of tourists visit Harbin Ice and Snow World every day to enjoy ice and snow activities. We will continue to explore the potential of the ice and snow economy and make new contributions to making it a new growth engine," said Sun Zemin, deputy director of the marketing department of Harbin Ice and Snow World.
Xi's New Year address inspires people across nation to strive for progress in 2026
