China's national legislature opens annual session

The 14th National People's Congress (NPC), China's top legislature, opened its fourth session on Thursday morning at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing.

Xi Jinping and other Party and state leaders attended the opening meeting alongside more than 2,700 NPC deputies.

Premier Li Qiang delivered a government work report at the meeting.

Reviewing the work of 2025, Li said that amidst profound and complex developments both at home and abroad, the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core rallied and led the Chinese people of all ethnic groups to meet challenges head-on, work hard with determination, steadfastly apply the new development philosophy and pursue high-quality development.

Thanks to these efforts, the main goals and tasks for economic and social development in 2025 were accomplished, the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-2025) was brought to a successful conclusion, and solid new strides were made in advancing Chinese modernization, Li said.

Li elaborated on what the government mainly did last year in seven aspects: implemented more proactive and effective macro policies and worked to maintain stable economic performance; pursued innovation-driven development and continued to build a modernized industrial system; further deepened reform and opening up and ensured smooth flows in the national economy; moved forward with both new urbanization and all-around rural revitalization and promoted coordinated development between urban and rural areas and between different regions; ensured the people's wellbeing and actively developed social programs; worked faster to build a "Beautiful China" and advanced green and low-carbon development; and continued to enhance government performance and developed new and better approaches to social governance. Over the past five years, major new achievements have been made in the cause of the Party and the country, ensuring a good beginning for a new journey toward the Second Centenary Goal. All 20 major targets, 17 major strategic tasks, and 102 major projects set out in the Outline of the 14th Five-Year Plan have been accomplished, he said. Li said the State Council has drafted the Outline of the 15th Five-Year Plan for National Economic and Social Development of the People's Republic of China (2026-2030), which has been submitted to this session for review.

The draft outline has specified 20 main indicators covering several areas, set out the major strategic tasks for the 15th Five-Year Plan period, placing particular emphasis on the following four areas: pursuing high-quality development, strengthening domestic economic flows, advancing common prosperity for all, and ensuring both development and security. It proposed a total of 109 major projects in six areas.

Li said the main targets for development this year are as follows: GDP growth of 4.5-5 percent, while striving for better in practice; surveyed urban unemployment rate of around 5.5 percent; over 12 million new urban jobs; CPI increase of around 2 percent; personal income growth in step with economic growth; a basic equilibrium in the balance of payments; grain output of around 700 million metric tons; a reduction of around 3.8 percent in carbon dioxide emissions per unit of GDP.

Looking ahead, the government will fully implement the Party Central Committee's overall plans for this year and take solid steps to do all its work well, the premier said. This includes building a robust domestic market, fostering new growth drivers at a faster pace, moving faster to achieve greater self-reliance and strength in science and technology, continuing to deepen reform in key areas, expanding high-standard opening up, advancing all-around rural revitalization, advancing new urbanization and coordinated regional development, taking stronger measures to ensure and improve the people's wellbeing, accelerating the green transition across the board, and strengthening risk prevention and mitigation and enhancing security capacity in key areas.

He also elaborated on work related to improving government performance, ethnic and religious affairs, overseas Chinese affairs, national defense and military development, the development of Hong Kong and Macao, cross-Strait relations, and China's foreign policies.

"Let us rally more closely around the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core, hold high the great banner of socialism with Chinese characteristics, and follow the guidance of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era. Let us forge ahead with one heart and one mind to accomplish the objectives and tasks for this year's economic and social development and get off to a good start in implementing the 15th Five-Year Plan. Let us strive to build a great country and advance national rejuvenation on all fronts through Chinese modernization!" Li said as he concluded the report.

Lawmakers examined the draft outline of the 15th Five-Year Plan for national economic and social development.

They examined the report on the implementation of the 2025 plan for national economic and social development and on the 2026 draft plan, and the draft plan for national economic and social development in 2026.

Lawmakers also examined the report on the execution of the central and local budgets for 2025 and on the draft central and local budgets for 2026, and the draft central and local budgets for 2026.

Li Hongzhong, vice chairman of the NPC Standing Committee, delivered explanatory remarks on a draft environmental code, a draft law on promoting ethnic unity and progress, and a draft law on national development planning, respectively.

China's national legislature opens annual session

China's national legislature opens annual session

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