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Speakers:

Mr. Kang Yi, commissioner of the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) 

Ms. Wang Guanhua, spokesperson of the NBS

Chairperson:

Ms. Shou Xiaoli, deputy director general of the Press Bureau of the State Council Information Office (SCIO) and spokesperson of the SCIO

Date:

Jan. 17, 2024

Shou Xiaoli:

Ladies and gentlemen, good morning. Welcome to this press conference held by the State Council Information Office (SCIO). This is a regular briefing on China's economic data. Today, we have invited Mr. Kang Yi, commissioner of the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) and Ms. Wang Guanhua, spokesperson of the NBS, to brief you on China's economic performance in 2023, and to take your questions.

Now, let's give the floor to Mr. Kang for his introduction.

Kang Yi:

Thank you, Ms. Shou. Friends from the media, good morning. First, I would like to brief you on China's economic performance of 2023. 

In 2023, the Chinese economy showed positive recovery momentum and made steady progress in pursuing high-quality development. In 2023, faced with complex and grave international environment as well as arduous tasks to advance reform, promote development and maintain stability at home, under the strong leadership of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core, all regions and departments strictly implemented the decisions and arrangements made by the CPC Central Committee and the State Council, adhered to the general principle of seeking progress while maintaining stability, fully and faithfully applied the new development philosophy on all fronts, accelerated efforts to foster a new pattern of development, comprehensively deepened reform and opening up, strengthened macro regulation, and redoubled efforts to expand domestic demand, optimize structure, boost confidence and prevent and defuse risks. As a result, the national economy witnessed the momentum of recovery, supply and demand improved steadily, transformation and upgrades were advanced solidly, employment and prices were generally stable, people's well-being was robustly and effectively guaranteed, steady progress was made in pursuing high-quality development, and major expected targets were well achieved.

According to preliminary estimates, the gross domestic product (GDP) was 126,058.2 billion yuan in 2023, an increase of 5.2% over the previous year at constant prices. By industries, the value added of the primary industry was 8,975.5 billion yuan, up by 4.1% over last year, that of the secondary industry was 48,258.9 billion yuan, up by 4.7% and that of the tertiary industry was 68,823.8 billion yuan, up by 5.8%. By quarter, the GDP for the first quarter went up by 4.5% year on year, up by 6.3% for the second quarter, 4.9% for the third quarter and 5.2% for the fourth quarter. The GDP increased by 1.0% quarter on quarter in the fourth quarter.

1. Grain output reached another record high and production of animal husbandry grew steadily.

The total output of grain in 2023 was 695.41 million tons, an increase of 8.88 million tons over the previous year, or up by 1.3%. Of this total, the output of summer grain was 146.15 million tons, down by 0.8%, and that of early rice was 28.34 million tons, up by 0.8%. The output of autumn grain reached 520.92 million tons, up by 1.9%. By species, the output of rice was 206.60 million tons, down by 0.9%; wheat, 136.59 million tons, down by 0.8%; corn, 288.84 million tons, up by 4.2%; and soybean, 20.84 million tons, up by 2.8%. The output of oil-bearing crops was 38.64 million tons, up by 5.7%. The total output of pork, beef, mutton and poultry in 2023 was 96.41 million tons, up by 4.5% over the previous year. Of this total, the output of pork was 57.94 million tons, up by 4.6%; beef, 7.53 million tons, up by 4.8%; mutton, 5.31 million tons, up by 1.3%; and poultry, 25.63 million tons, up by 4.9%. The production of milk reached 41.97 million tons, up by 6.7% and that of eggs stood at 35.63 million tons, up by 3.1%. In 2023, 726.62 million pigs were slaughtered, up by 3.8%, and 434.22 million pigs were registered in stock at the end of the year, down by 4.1%.

2. Industrial production recovered steadily and equipment manufacturing grew fast.

The total value added of industrial enterprises above the designated size increased by 4.6% over the previous year. In terms of sectors, the value added of mining was up by 2.3%, that of manufacturing up by 5.0% and that of production and supply of electricity, thermal power, gas and water up by 4.3%. The value added of equipment manufacturing went up by 6.8%, 2.2 percentage points faster than that of the industrial enterprises above the designated size. In terms of ownership, the value added of the state holding enterprises grew by 5.0%, that of the share-holding enterprises up by 5.3%, that of the enterprises funded by foreign investors and investors from Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan increased by 1.4% and that of private enterprises up by 3.1%. By products, the production of solar cells, new energy vehicles and power-generating units (power-generating devices) grew by 54.0%, 30.3% and 28.5%, respectively. In December, the total value added of the industrial enterprises above the designated size grew by 6.8% year on year, or up by 0.52% month on month. In the first eleven months, the total profits made by industrial enterprises above the designated size were 6,982.3 billion yuan, down by 4.4% year on year, of which the profits in November grew by 29.5%, registering growth for four consecutive months.

3. Service sector registered fast growth and contact-and-gathering-based services improved notably.

The value added of services went up by 5.8% over the previous year. The value added of accommodation and catering, information transmission, software and information technology services, leasing and business services, transportation, storage and postal services, financial intermediation, and wholesale and retail grew by 14.5%, 11.9%, 9.3%, 8.0%, 6.8% and 6.2%, respectively. In December, the Index of Services Production went up by 8.5% year on year, specifically, that of accommodation and catering and that of information transmission, software and information technology services grew by 34.8% and 13.8%, respectively. In the first eleven months, the business revenue of service enterprises above the designated size grew by 8.5% year on year, of which the business revenue of culture, sports and recreation, information transmission, software and information technology services and leasing and business services went up by 18.9%, 12.8% and 12.7%, respectively.

4. Market sales recovered rapidly and services consumption grew fast.

In 2023, the total retail sales of consumer goods reached 47,149.5 billion yuan, up by 7.2% over the previous year. Analyzed by different areas, the retail sales in urban areas reached 40,749.0 billion yuan, up by 7.1%; and the retail sales in rural areas stood at 6,400.5 billion yuan, up by 8.0%. Grouped by consumption patterns, the retail sales of goods were 41,860.5 billion yuan, up by 5.8%; and the income of catering was 5,289.0 billion yuan, up by 20.4%. The sales of basic living goods grew steadily, with the retail sales of clothes, shoes, hats and textiles, and that of grain, oil and food by enterprises above the designated size growing by 12.9% and 5.2%, respectively. The sales of upgraded goods grew fast, with the retail sales of gold, silver and jewelry, sports and recreational articles and communication equipment by enterprises above the designated size growing up by 13.3%, 11.2% and 7.0%, respectively. The national online retail sales reached 15,426.4 billion yuan, growing by 11.0% over the previous year. Specifically, the online retail sales of physical goods were 13,017.4 billion yuan, up by 8.4%, accounting for 27.6% of the total retail sales of consumer goods. In December, the total retail sales of consumer goods went up by 7.4% year on year, or a month-on-month growth of 0.42%. The retail sales of services in 2023 grew by 20.0% over that of the previous year.

5. Investment in fixed assets scaled up and investment in high-tech industries witnessed a good momentum of growth.

In 2023, the investment in fixed assets (excluding rural households) reached 50,303.6 billion yuan, up by 3.0% over the previous year, or up by 6.4% after deducting price factors. Specifically, the investment in infrastructure went up by 5.9%, manufacturing up by 6.5% and real estate development down by 9.6%. The floor space of commercial buildings sold reached 1,117.35 million square meters, down by 8.5%. The total sales of commercial buildings were 11,662.2 billion yuan, down by 6.5%. By industries, the investment in the primary industry went down by 0.1%; that in the secondary industry up by 9.0%; and that in the tertiary industry up by 0.4%. The private investment went down by 0.4%. Deducting the investment in real estate development, the private investment grew by 9.2%. The investment in high-tech industries grew by 10.3%, 7.3 percentage points faster than that of the total investment. Specifically, the investment in high-tech manufacturing and high-tech services grew by 9.9% and 11.4%, respectively. In terms of high-tech manufacturing, the investment in manufacturing of aerospace vehicle and equipment, manufacturing of computers and office devices and manufacturing of electronics and communication equipment grew by 18.4%, 14.5% and 11.1%, respectively. In terms of high-tech services, the investment in services for transformation of scientific and technological achievements and in e-commerce services went up by 31.8% and 29.2%, respectively. In December, the investment in fixed assets (excluding rural households) grew by 0.09% month on month.

6. Imports and exports of goods was generally stable and trade structure continued to optimize.

In 2023, the total value of imports and exports of goods was 41,756.8 billion yuan, an increase of 0.2% over the previous year. The total value of exports was 23,772.6 billion yuan, up by 0.6%; the total value of imports was 17,984.2 billion yuan, down by 0.3%. The trade balance was 5,788.4 billion yuan in surplus. The imports and exports by private enterprises grew by 6.3%, accounting for 53.5% of the total value of imports and exports, 3.1 percentage points higher than that of the previous year. The imports and exports with the Belt and Road partner countries grew by 2.8%, accounting for 46.6% of the total value of imports and exports, 1.2 percentage points higher than that of the previous year. The exports of mechanical and electrical products grew by 2.9%, accounting for 58.6% of the total value of exports. In December, the total value of imports and exports of goods was 3,809.8 billion yuan, up by 2.8% year on year. Specifically, the total value of exports was 2,175.4 billion yuan, up by 3.8%; the total value of imports was 1,634.5 billion yuan, up by 1.6%.

7. Consumer price grew mildly and core consumer price index (CPI) was generally stable.

In 2023, the CPI went up by 0.2% over the previous year. Grouped by commodity categories, prices for food, tobacco and alcohol grew by 0.3%; clothing grew by 1.0%; housing kept at the same level; articles and services for daily use grew by 0.1%; transportation and communication dropped by 2.3%; education, culture and recreation grew by 2.0%; medical services and health care grew by 1.1%; and other articles and services grew by 3.2%. In terms of food, tobacco and alcohol prices, prices for pork went down by 13.6%, fresh vegetables down by 2.6%, grain up by 1.0%, and fresh fruits up by 4.9%. Core CPI excluding the prices of food and energy went up by 0.7%. In December, the CPI went down by 0.3% year on year, or up by 0.1% month on month. In 2023, the producer prices for industrial products went down by 3.0% over the previous year; in December, it went down by 2.7% year on year, or down by 0.3% month on month. The purchasing prices for industrial producers went down by 3.6% over the previous year; in December, it went down by 3.8% year on year, or down by 0.2% month on month.

8. Employment was generally stable and surveyed unemployment rate in urban areas went down.

In 2023, the surveyed unemployment rate in urban areas averaged 5.2%, 0.4% percentage point lower than that of the previous year. In December, the surveyed unemployment rate in urban areas was 5.1%. The surveyed unemployment rate of population with local household registration was 5.2% and that of population with non-local household registration was 4.7%, of which the rate of population with non-local agricultural household registration was 4.3%. The surveyed unemployment rate of the population aged from 16 to 24, from 25 to 29, and from 30 to 59 (excluding students) registered 14.9%, 6.1% and 3.9%, respectively. The urban surveyed unemployment rate in 31 major cities was 5.0%. The employees of enterprises worked 49.0 hours per week on average. In 2023, the number of rural migrant workers totaled 297.53 million, 1.91 million more than that of the previous year, or up by 0.6%. Specifically, local migrant workers totaled 120.95 million, down by 2.2%; outside migrant workers totaled 176.58 million, up by 2.7%. The average monthly income of migrant workers was 4,780 yuan, up by 3.6% over the previous year.

9. Resident income continued to increase and income of rural residents grew faster than that of urban residents.

In 2023, the nationwide per capita disposable income of residents was 39,218 yuan, a nominal increase of 6.3% over that of the previous year, and a real increase of 6.1% after deducting price factors. In terms of permanent residence, the per capita disposable income of urban households was 51,821 yuan, a nominal growth of 5.1% over that of the previous year and a real growth of 4.8% after deducting price factors. The per capita disposable income of rural households was 21,691 yuan, a nominal growth of 7.7% over that of the previous year and a real growth of 7.6% after deducting price factors. The median of the nationwide per capita disposable income was 33,036 yuan, a nominal increase of 5.3% over that of the previous year. Grouped by income quintile, the per capita disposable income of low-income group reached 9,215 yuan, the lower-middle-income group 20,442 yuan, the middle-income group 32,195 yuan, the upper-middle-income group 50,220 yuan and the high-income group 95,055 yuan. In 2023, the nationwide per capita consumption expenditure was 26,796 yuan, a nominal growth of 9.2% over the previous year, or a real growth of 9.0% after deducting price factors. The per capita consumption expenditure on food, tobacco and alcohol accounted for 29.8% of the per capita consumption expenditure (Engel's coefficient), 0.7percentage point lower than that of the previous year. The per capita consumption expenditure on services went up by 14.4%, accounting for 45.2% of the per capita consumption expenditure, 2.0 percentage points higher than that of the previous year.

10. Total population declined and urbanization rate continued to grow.

By the end of 2023, the national population was 1,409.67 million (including the population of 31 provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities and servicemen, but excluding residents of Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan and foreigners living in the 31 provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities), a decrease of 2.08 million over that at the end of 2022. In 2023, the number of births was 9.02 million with a birth rate of 6.39 per thousand; the number of deaths was 11.10 million with a mortality rate of 7.87 per thousand; the natural population growth rate was minus 1.48 per thousand. In terms of gender, the male population was 720.32 million, and the female population was 689.35 million; the sex ratio of the total population was 104.49 (the female is 100). In terms of age structure, the population at the working age from 16 to 59 was 864.81 million, accounting for 61.3% of the total population; the population aged 60 and over was 296.97 million, accounting for 21.1% of the total population, specifically, the population aged 65 and over was 216.76 million, accounting for 15.4% of the total population. In terms of urban-rural structure, the permanent residents in urban areas were 932.67 million, an increase of 11.96 million over the end of the previous year; and the permanent residents in rural areas were 477.00 million, a decrease of 14.04 million. The share of urban population in the total population (urbanization rate) was 66.16%, 0.94 percentage point higher than that at the end of the previous year.

Generally speaking, with external pressure withstood and internal difficulties overcome in 2023, the national economy witnessed momentum of recovery, the high-quality development was advanced steadily, the major expected targets were well achieved, and solid strides were taken in building China into a modern socialist country in all respects. However, we must be aware that the external environment is increasingly complex, severe and uncertain, and the economic growth is still facing difficulties and challenges. At the next stage, we must take Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era as the guideline, fully implement the guiding principles of the 20th CPC National Congress and the second plenary session of the 20th CPC Central Committee as well as the arrangements made by the Central Economic Work Conference, fully and faithfully apply the new development philosophy on all fronts, and accelerate efforts to foster a new pattern of development. Focusing on the primary mission of high-quality development, we must follow the principle of seeking progress while maintaining stability, promoting stability through progress, and establishing the new before abolishing the old. We must intensify macro regulation, coordinate expanding domestic demand with deepening supply-side structural reform, ensure both new urbanization and rural revitalization across the board, and secure both high-quality development and high-level security. We must effectively enhance economic vitality, prevent and mitigate risks, improve social expectations, consolidate and boost the sound momentum of economic recovery and growth, in a bid to effectively upgrade the quality and appropriately expand the quantity of the national economy.

Next, I'll brief you on the improvements to the system of age-based, surveyed urban unemployment rate.

Highly valuing the improvement of the labor force survey system and considering suggestions from the public, the NBS organized in-depth discussions among relevant departments and experts, studied international standards as well as foreign practices and experiences, conducted field investigations, and carefully examined and studied the statistical methods and criteria for unemployment rates. In order to better reflect the youth employment and unemployment situation more fully and faithfully, two adjustments have been made to the age-grouped unemployment rate statistics based on a thorough consideration of the national conditions. The first is releasing the surveyed unemployment rate of those aged 16 to 24, and the second is releasing that of those aged 25 to 29, both excluding students. There are two reasons for the adjustments:

The first is to monitor the employment and unemployment status of young people in a more targeted manner. For each month on average in 2023, among the urban population aged 16 to 24 in China, nearly 62 million were students, accounting for more than 60% of the total; and around 34 million were not students, making up over 30% of the total. Considering our national conditions, the primary task of students is learning rather than engaging in part-time work. Including students in age groups would blur the distinction between those seeking part-time employment and graduates searching for jobs, failing to accurately reflect the employment situation of young individuals entering society and actually looking for jobs. Calculating the age-based unemployment rate excluding students helps provide a more precise depiction of the employment conditions of young people entering the workforce. This approach enables the provision of more accurate employment services and the formulation of more effective and targeted employment policies for non-students aged 16 to 24.

The second is to reflect the employment and unemployment situation of young people spanning the period from graduation to attainment of stable employment. With the continuous increase in the length of schooling for young individuals in China, the nation's current gross enrollment rate in higher education stands at nearly 60%. At the age of 24, most young people have just graduated and are in the midst of navigating career choices, with some being unemployed or facing job instability. By the age of 29, the majority have passed through the phase of career decision-making, with their employment tending to stabilize. There is a deep public concern regarding the employment status of young people right after graduation and for some time after their graduation. Therefore, the NBS has added calculations and release of the unemployment rate for the labor force aged 25-29.

Going forward, the NBS will release the unemployment rates for groups aged 16 to 24, 25 to 29 and 30 to 59 each month, excluding students. The data can be accessed via the NBS's database.

That's all for my briefing. Now I'm ready to take your questions.

Shou Xiaoli:

Thank you, Mr. Kang. The floor is now open for questions. Please identify the news outlet you work for before raising questions.