BEIJING: China will keep expanding domestic demand and support the broader economy with more proactive policies in 2026, the Politburo, a top decision-making body of the Communist Party, was cited as saying on Monday (Dec 8) by state media Xinhua.
The remarks about a “more proactive fiscal policy” and “appropriately loose monetary policy” point to a high budget deficit, debt issuance and additional rate cuts next year to reach a growth target likely to remain at around 5 per cent, analysts said.
China will make efforts to “stabilise jobs, firms, markets and expectations” to achieve a good start for the next five-year plan, Xinhua said.
The world’s second-largest economy is on track to reach this year’s growth target of around 5 per cent, but faces headwinds from a prolonged property slump, weak consumer demand, excess factory capacity in some sectors and declines in infrastructure-led investment.
Even though China and the US reached a trade truce, Chinese manufacturers are still ramping up efforts to diversify their export markets, pursuing closer trade ties with Southeast Asia and other emerging markets, and leveraging Chinese firms’ global footprint to establish new production hubs for low-tariff access.
Monday’s customs data showed Chinese shipments to the US dropped 29 per cent in November year-on-year, but exports to the European Union grew an annual 14.8 per cent last month and the fast-growing Southeast Asian economies took in 8.2 per cent more goods over the same period.
Source: CNA
