Reuters Econ World China's five-year plan
Oct 22, 2025
Join Kevin Krolicki, Reuters Greater China bureau chief and expert on Chinese politics and economics, as he delves into China's upcoming five-year plan. He explains the evolution of these plans from strict quotas to broader social and environmental goals. Discover how domestic challenges, like falling home prices and oversupply, shape economic strategies. Kevin also discusses the political signals behind the plan, including its impact on trade and military leadership, revealing insights on China's position in global trade talks.
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State-Level Corporate Goal Setting
- China's five-year plan functions like corporate goal-setting for a 10-million-person state apparatus.
- It aligns targets and KPIs from top leadership down through ministries and 45,000 local governments.
From Quotas To Market Reform
- Early five-year plans imposed prescriptive production quotas and led to disasters like the Great Leap Forward.
- The planning system then evolved in the late 1970s to open markets and integrate China into global trade.
Coordination And Political Signalling
- The plan serves two functions: coordinating millions of officials and signaling Xi Jinping's priorities.
- Its legitimacy flows from being seen as the leader's goals, not just bureaucratic targets.