Structure of Investment in Fixed Assets Constantly Improved while Effective Investment Kept on Exerting Its Driving Role

Structure of Investment in Fixed Assets Constantly Improved while Effective Investment Kept on Exerting Its Driving Role

—Series Report XIII on Achievements in Economic and Social Development during the 14th Five-Year Plan Period

National Bureau of Statistics, June 5, 2026

During the 14th Five-Year Plan period, under the strong leadership of the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core, all localities and government departments thoroughly implemented the decisions and plans of the CPC Central Committee and the State Council, had an accurate understanding of the new stage of development, fully applied the new development philosophy, accelerated efforts to create a new development pattern to promote high-quality development, and worked proactively to expand effective investment. As a result, nationwide investment in fixed assets was maintained at a large scale, with the structure and efficiency steadily improved. Investment achieved impressive results in improving living standards, shoring up weak links, and boosting growth momentum, and constantly played a vital role in optimizing the supply structure, laying a solid foundation for promoting high-quality economic development and advancing the Chinese path to modernization.

I. Investment Scaled up and Structurally Upgraded, Sustaining a Vital Role in Optimizing the Supply Structure

(I) Investment Scale Sustained at a High Level with Effective Investment Continuously Playing a Crucial Role

Centered on high-quality development and focusing on quality and efficiency improvement, China worked proactively to expand effective investment and maintained nationwide investment in fixed assets on a large scale, which effectively played a vital role in expanding domestic demand and stabilizing the overall economic performance. From 2021 to 2025, the total investment in fixed assets across society amounted to about RMB 240 trillion, an average annual increase of 2.3% ^[1]. In particular, the investment in fixed assets (excluding rural households) ^[2] grew at an average annual rate of 2.4%. From the perspective of contributions of investment to economic growth, from 2021 to 2025, gross capital formation contributed to GDP growth by 1.7, 1.2, 1.4, 1.1, and 0.8 percentage points, respectively. The steady growth of investment ensured construction in key areas and critical industries for national economic development, provided important support for national economic security and long-term development, and effectively played a supportive role in the stable operation of the economy.

(II) The Solid Advancement of Investment in Major Engineering Construction, Laying a Solid Foundation for High-quality Development

With a focus on shoring up weak spots and generating long-term benefits, China effectively implemented a host of landmark and pioneering major projects and achieved real results. From 2021 to 2025, nationwide investment in projects with a planned total investment of RMB 100 million or more grew at an average annual rate of 6.5%, 4.1 percentage points higher than the overall investment growth rate, serving as an important driver of investment growth. As key measures to promote the implementation of national strategies and expand effective investments, 102 major projects under the14th Five-Year Plan were completed as planned, yielding a series of strategically significant and landmark achievements of overarching importance. Notable examples include the following. Century projects, such as the Baihetan Hydropower Station and the China-Laos Railway, were completed and put into operation. Strategic projects, including the Sichuan-Xizang Railway and the hydropower project in the lower reaches of the Yarlung Zangbo River, were steadily advanced. Public wellbeing projects such as urban renewal and the shelterbelt forest program in northeast, north, and northwest China improved quality and efficiency. These major projects played an irreplaceable key role in promoting steady economic growth, safeguarding and improving people’s well-being, and consolidating the foundation for the country’s long-term development, injecting strong momentum into the Chinese path to modernization.

(III) Investment Structure Improved and Upgraded, Leading the Industrial Pattern Towards Innovation-led and High-quality Development

In line with strategic development priorities, effective investment continued to expand across areas such as industrial transformation, consumption upgrading, human capital enhancement, improvement of people’s well-being in society, and security capacity building, leading to a further optimized investment structure. Investment in the primary industry continued to increase, further solidifying the foundation for agricultural development. From 2021 to 2025, investment in the primary industry grew at an average annual rate of 2.8%, the mechanization of entire agricultural production processes was fully promoted, the foundation for modern agricultural development was continuously consolidated, and the high-quality development of high-standard cropland was advanced. By the end of 2025, China had built high-standard cropland with a total area of more than 1 billion mu and had continuously improved the intensive utilization and comprehensive production capacity of arable land ^[3]. Investment in the secondary industry grew rapidly, accelerating the formation of a new pattern for industrial development. From 2021 to 2025, investment in the secondary industry grew at an average annual rate of 9.0%, among which, investment in manufacturing recorded an average annual rate of 7.7%. In 2025, China ranked first in the world for the 16th consecutive year in terms of its value added of manufacturing. China moved faster to construct a modernized industrial system, build a larger group of national advanced manufacturing clusters, gained improvement in digitalization and intelligence, and thus laid a solid foundation for moving faster to boost its strength in manufacturing and fostering new quality productive forces. The dominant pattern of investment in the tertiary industry remained stable, helping new growth drivers grow in the service industry. In 2025, the national investment in the tertiary industry was nearly RMB 30 trillion, accounting for 61.5% of total investment, above 60% for the 13th consecutive year. with the continuous support of investment in the tertiary industry, the value added of the tertiary industry to GDP steadily increased, reaching 57.7% in 2025, an increase of 3.2 percentage points compared to 2020.

II. Rapid Growth in Investment in Key Sectors, with New Growth Drivers Developing at an Accelerating Rate

(I) Sustained Efforts to Boost Investment in High-Tech Industries, with Scientific and Technological Innovation Leading High-Quality Development

Nationwide investment in high-tech industries grew at a robust pace, propelling the industrial structure steadily towards medium and high end. A number of major national science and technology infrastructure and cutting-edge industrial projects were completed and put into operation, providing solid support for the deep integration of scientific and technological innovation and industrial innovation. From 2021 to 2025, nationwide investment in high-tech industries grew at an average annual rate of 9.9%, which was 7.5 percentage points higher than the average annual growth rate of total investment. Specifically, investment in high-tech manufacturing grew at an average annual rate of 10.4%, which was 2.7 percentage points higher than the average annual growth rate of total investment in manufacturing, serving as an important engine for promoting the transformation and upgrading of manufacturing. A large number of emerging manufacturing projects were completed and began production. The C919 large passenger airliner achieved commercial flight. The production and sales of new energy vehicles remained the highest in the world. The CR450 high-speed trains consolidated and expanded China’s world-leading advantage in high-speed rail technology. The “Zuchongzhi-3” quantum computing prototype led the world. Investment in high-tech services grew at an average annual rate of 9.0%. Within this, driven by the explosive evolution of artificial intelligence technology, investment in information services grew at an average annual rate of 15.2%, highlighting dynamic investment in new growth drivers and new business forms. As the efficacy of investment continued to be unleashed, China greatly improved its overall strength in high-tech industries and moved faster to build a modernized industrial system led by scientific and technological innovation.

(II) Overall Acceleration in Equipment Renewal and Technical Renovation Investment, Effectively Driving Industrial Transformation and Upgrading

By making good use of large-scale equipment renewal, China thoroughly carried out technology transformation and upgrading in the manufacturing sector, and accelerated the transformation of traditional industries towards higher-end, smarter, and greener development. Especially since 2024, the renewal and trade-in policies have continued to deliver tangible results, driving high-speed growth in investment in equipment and tool purchases, which has become an important lever for driving industrial quality and efficiency. From 2021 to 2025, investment in the purchase of equipment and machinery nationwide grew at an average annual rate of 6.8%, which was 4.4 percentage points higher than the average annual growth rate of total investment. Specifically, the year-on-year growth was 15.7% in 2024 and 11.8% in 2025. Driven by favorable policies, enterprises showed their ever-growing willingness for technical renovation, and moved faster to perform transformation and upgrading. From 2021 to 2025, nationwide investment in industrial technical renovation grew at an average annual rate of 6.3%, which was 3.9 percentage points higher than the average annual growth rate of total investment. Investment in equipment renewal and technical renovation registered rapid growth, which effectively boosted the transition and continuity between old and new growth drivers and the building of a modernized industrial system in every aspect.

(III) Rapid Growth in Green and Low-Carbon Investment, Accelerating the Building of a Modern Energy System

Green and low-carbon investment continued to play an effective role and the energy production structure was continuously optimized, strongly supporting greener economic and social development in all respects. From 2021 to 2025, investment in clean power, including nuclear power, wind power, and solar power, grew at an average annual rate of 6.0%, helping to continuously optimize China’s energy production structure. By the end of 2025, China’s total installed generation capacity of renewables reached 2.34 billion kilowatts. The share of China’s installed capacity of renewables increased from around 40% at the end of 2020 to around 60% at the end of 2025. Clean energy moved from being a “substitute” to a “mainstay,” further consolidating its pillar position in the energy system.

(IV) Rapid Growth in Investment in Intellectual Property Products, Stimulating New Drivers for Economic Development

In recent years, China’s innovation-driven development has shown strong momentum, the industrial structure has been continuously optimized, investment in intellectual property products has maintained relatively fast growth, its scale has continuously expanded, and its share in total investment has steadily increased. From 2021 to 2025, nationwide investment in intellectual property products cumulatively completed approximately RMB 30 trillion, accounting for 12.4% of total investment. It grew at an average annual rate of 6.4%, which was 4.0 percentage points higher than the average annual growth rate of total investment. Investment in intellectual property products registered rapid growth, reflecting China’s significant achievements in R&D investment and technological innovation, demonstrating the vigorous growth of new drivers for economic development.

III. Greater Investment in People’s Livelihood to Improve People’s Quality of Life Continuously

(I) Steady Growth in Investment in Transport Operation at a Steady Pace, and a Comprehensive and Multidimensional Transport Network Continuously Improved

The transportation sector saw steady growth in the scale of construction, sustained optimization of road network layout, and continuous enhancement of capacity for transport service and support. From 2021 to 2025, investment in the transportation sector nationwide grew at an average annual rate of 5.5%, which was 3.1 percentage points higher than the average annual growth rate of total investment. Specifically, investment in railway transport grew at an average annual rate of 7.0%, with the high-speed railway network being continuously densified and notable progress made in shoring up weaknesses in conventional-speed railways. Investment in air transport grew at an average annual rate of 8.2%, driven by coordinated efforts to expand and construct key airports and build regional feeder airports. Investment in water transport grew at an average annual rate of 14.7%, with accelerated progress in specialized and intelligent upgrading of ports and terminals and further improvement of the high-grade inland waterway network. Currently, China has basically formed a comprehensive transportation network with railways as the backbone, highways as the foundation, and water transport and aviation giving full play to their comparative advantages. The scale of infrastructure has grown in step with the quality of services, providing a strong guarantee for ensuring smooth flows in the national economy and promoting coordinated regional development.

(II) Strong Momentum of Growth in Investment in Information Infrastructure, and an Increasingly Solid Foundation for the Digital Economy

The National Cyber Development Strategy advanced faster, and investment in information and communication infrastructure continued to grow at a fairly rapid pace. From 2021 to 2025, investment in information transmission nationwide grew at an average annual rate of 8.2%, driving the iterative upgrading of urban and rural broadband network infrastructure. All counties have achieved gigabit access, and all townships and over 95% of administrative villages have 5G coverage. A high-speed, ubiquitous, secure, and controllable information infrastructure system that integrates the cloud and the internet was taking shape at an accelerated pace, providing foundational support for the development of emerging business forms such as the industrial internet, artificial intelligence, and big data.

(III) Balanced Investment in the Social Sector, and Consolidated Underlying Support for Improving People’s Livelihoods

Efforts in the social sector investment continued to increase, equal access to basic public services was ensured, and the people gained a greater sense of fulfilment, happiness, and security. From 2021 to 2025, investment in health nationwide grew at an average annual rate of 3.6%, effectively enhancing the capacity of primary-level medical and health services and continuously strengthening public health prevention, control, and treatment capabilities. Investment in education nationwide grew at an average annual rate of 2.4%, helping to orderly advance the construct various kinds of kindergartens, primary and secondary schools, and universities and colleges, and to continuously optimize the layout of educational resources. Investment in culture and arts nationwide grew at an average annual rate of 1.4%. Thanks to it, a number of key cultural facilities were completed and put into use, making the public cultural service system more robust. China worked faster to advance the construction of a multi-level housing security system. From 2021 to 2025, over 11 million units (rooms) of various types of government-subsidized housing and resettlement housing from urban village redevelopment and renovation of dilapidated urban housing were built or sourced, benefiting over 30 million people. During these five years, the total area of new commercial residential buildings sold reached approximately 5 billion square meters, and nationwide, over 240,000 old urban residential communities were renovated, benefiting over 40 million households and 110 million people.

IV. Increased Efforts in Coordinated Regional Investment, Contributing to the Gradual Formation of Multi-Level Growth Poles

(I) Coordinated Efforts in Investment Across the Four Major Regions, Achieving More Balanced and Coordinated Regional Development

With the in-depth implementation of the coordinated regional development strategy, investment in China’s four major regions showed a good trend of coordinated efforts and gradient advancement, achieving more balanced and coordinated regional development. From 2021 to 2025, investment in the eastern region grew at an average annual rate of 1.3%, fully playing its role as a stabilizer and mainstay. Investment in the central region grew at an average annual rate of 4.2%, demonstrating strong resilience and vitality due to its geographical advantages and industrial undertaking capacity. Investment in the western region grew at an average annual rate of 1.9%, with positive progress made in shoring up weak links in infrastructure and fostering characteristic industries. Investment in the northeastern region declined at an average annual rate of 1.5%, with the rate of decline narrowing compared to the later period of the 13th Five-Year Plan, and adjustment and transformation in key areas steadily advanced. The four major regions promoted each other based on their comparative advantages and complemented each other’s functions, and steady progress was made in advancing a new pattern of investment for regional development.

(II) Steady Growth in Investment for Major Regional Strategies, with Their Role as Core Growth Engines Becoming Increasingly Prominent

Investment for major regional strategies grew at a steady pace, playing an important role in leading high-quality development and optimizing spatial layout. From 2021 to 2025, investment in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei Region grew at an average annual rate of 3.9%, which was 1.5 percentage points higher than the national average annual growth rate. Intensified efforts were made to achieve coordinated development in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei Region, and the construction of a modern capital metropolitan area accelerated. Investment in the Yangtze River Delta region grew at an average annual rate of 2.5%, which was 0.1 percentage points higher than the national average annual growth rate. Integrated development in the Yangtze River Delta achieved solid, steady, and sustained progress, and the driving effect of growth poles was continuously consolidated. Investment in the Chengdu-Chongqing economic circle grew at an average annual rate of 2.6%, which was 0.2 percentage points higher than the national average annual growth rate. The development of a strategic highland for inland opening-up continued, speeding up its emergence as a new engine for the development of southwest China.

(III) Increased Investment in the Yangtze River Economic Belt and Yellow River Basin, Continuously Enhancing Their Supporting Role in Coordinated Regional Development

Investment in key river basins grew steadily, playing an important bond in smoothing the domestic circulation and optimizing the layout of productive forces. From 2021 to 2025, investment in the Yangtze River Economic Belt grew at an average annual rate of 2.5%, which was 0.1 percentage points higher than the national average annual growth rate. The total investment steadily increased, and its leading role became more prominent. During the 2021–2025 period, the total investment in the nine provinces and autonomous regions of the Yellow River Basin recorded an average annual growth rate of 3.3%, which was 0.9 percentage points higher than the national average annual investment growth rate. The foundation for ecological conservation and high-quality development in the Yellow River Basin was further consolidated, and a distinctive “golden economic belt” featuring coordination and connectivity was gradually taking shape.

During the 14th Five-Year Plan period, China’s investment in fixed assets adhered to serving the overarching national strategic goals, focused on high-quality development, placed greater emphasis on shoring up weak links and fostering long-term benefits, paid more attention to enhancing sustained momentum for development, and prioritized promoting people’s well-being. Significant achievements were made in driving industrial upgrading, promoting regional coordination, further ensuring people’s well-being, etc. Standing at this new historic starting point, we should uphold Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era as our guide, fully and faithfully apply the new development philosophy on all fronts, better play the pivotal role of investment in optimizing the supply structure, continuously expand effective investment, persistently optimize the investment structure, work to stimulate private investment, and make new contributions to vigorously promoting high-quality economic and social development and comprehensively advancing the Chinese path to modernization.

Note:

[1] The average annual growth rates are calculated on a comparable basis and are not adjusted for price factors.

[2] Unless otherwise specified, subsequent statistics on investment in fixed assets refer to investment in fixed assets (excluding rural households). “Total investment” and “nationwide investment” both refer to investment in fixed assets (excluding rural households).

[3] Source: Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs.

Translate from: Websit of the National Bureau of Statistics,June 5,2026