Economy - overview:
Since the late 1970s, China has moved from a closed, centrally planned system to a more market-oriented one that plays a major global role. China has implemented reforms in a gradualist fashion, resulting in efficiency gains that have contributed to a more than tenfold increase in GDP since 1978. Reforms began with the phaseout of collectivized agriculture, and expanded to include the gradual liberalization of prices, fiscal decentralization, increased autonomy for state enterprises, growth of the private sector, development of stock markets and a modern banking system, and opening to foreign trade and investment. China continues to pursue an industrial policy, state support of key sectors, and a restrictive investment regime. From 2013 to 2017, China had one of the fastest growing economies in the world, averaging slightly more than 7% real growth per year. Measured on a purchasing power parity (PPP) basis that adjusts for price differences, China in 2017 stood as the largest economy in the world, surpassing the US in 2014 for the first time in modern history. China became the world's largest exporter in 2010, and the largest trading nation in 2013. Still, China's per capita income is below the world average.

In July 2005 moved to an exchange rate system that references a basket of currencies. From mid-2005 to late 2008, the renminbi (RMB) appreciated more than 20% against the US dollar, but the exchange rate remained virtually pegged to the dollar from the onset of the global financial crisis until June 2010, when Beijing announced it would resume a gradual appreciation. From 2013 until early 2015, the renminbi held steady against the dollar, but it depreciated 13% from mid-2015 until end-2016 amid strong capital outflows; in 2017 the RMB resumed appreciating against the dollar – roughly 7% from end-of-2016 to end-of-2017. In 2015, the People’s Bank of China announced it would continue to carefully push for full convertibility of the renminbi, after the currency was accepted as part of the IMF’s special drawing rights basket. However, since late 2015 the Chinese Government has strengthened capital controls and oversight of overseas investments to better manage the exchange rate and maintain financial stability.

The Chinese Government faces numerous economic challenges including: (a) reducing its high domestic savings rate and correspondingly low domestic household consumption; (b) managing its high corporate debt burden to maintain financial stability; (c) controlling off-balance sheet local government debt used to finance infrastructure stimulus; (d) facilitating higher-wage job opportunities for the aspiring middle class, including rural migrants and college graduates, while maintaining competitiveness; (e) dampening speculative investment in the real estate sector without sharply slowing the economy; (f) reducing industrial overcapacity; and (g) raising productivity growth rates through the more efficient allocation of capital and state-support for innovation. Economic development has progressed further in coastal provinces than in the interior, and by 2016 more than 169.3 million migrant workers and their dependents had relocated to urban areas to find work. One consequence of China’s population control policy known as the "one-child policy" - which was relaxed in 2016 to permit all families to have two children - is that China is now one of the most rapidly aging countries in the world. Deterioration in the environment - notably air pollution, soil erosion, and the steady fall of the water table, especially in the North - is another long-term problem. China continues to lose arable land because of erosion and urbanization. The Chinese Government is seeking to add energy production capacity from sources other than coal and oil, focusing on natural gas, nuclear, and clean energy development. In 2016, China ratified the Paris Agreement, a multilateral agreement to combat climate change, and committed to peak its carbon dioxide emissions between 2025 and 2030.

The government's 13th Five-Year Plan, unveiled in March 2016, emphasizes the need to increase innovation and boost domestic consumption to make the economy less dependent on government investment, exports, and heavy industry. However, China has made more progress on subsidizing innovation than rebalancing the economy. Beijing has committed to giving the market a more decisive role in allocating resources, but the Chinese Government’s policies continue to favor state-owned enterprises and emphasize stability. Chinese leaders in 2010 pledged to double China’s GDP by 2020, and the 13th Five Year Plan includes annual economic growth targets of at least 6.5% through 2020 to achieve that goal. In recent years, China has renewed its support for state-owned enterprises in sectors considered important to "economic security," explicitly looking to foster globally competitive industries. Chinese leaders also have undermined some market-oriented reforms by reaffirming the "dominant" role of the state in the economy, a stance that threatens to discourage private initiative and make the economy less efficient over time. The slight acceleration in economic growth in 2017—the first such uptick since 2010—gives Beijing more latitude to pursue its economic reforms, focusing on financial sector deleveraging and its Supply-Side Structural Reform agenda, first announced in late 2015.

GDP (purchasing power parity):
$25.36 trillion (2018)
$23.21 trillion (2017 est.)
$21.72 trillion (2016 est.)
note: data are in 2017 dollars
country comparison to the world (CIA rank, may be based on non-current data): 1
[see also: GDP country ranks ]
[see also: GDP country ranks ]

GDP (official exchange rate):
$12.01 trillion (2017 est.)
note: because China's exchange rate is determined by fiat rather than by market forces, the official exchange rate measure of GDP is not an accurate measure of China's output; GDP at the official exchange rate substantially understates the actual level of China's output vis-a-vis the rest of the world; in China's situation, GDP at purchasing power parity provides the best measure for comparing output across countries
[see also: GDP (official exchange rate) country ranks ]
[see also: GDP (official exchange rate) country ranks ]

GDP - real growth rate:
6.9% (2017 est.)
6.7% (2016 est.)
6.9% (2015 est.)
country comparison to the world (CIA rank, may be based on non-current data): 21
[see also: GDP - real growth rate country ranks ]
[see also: GDP - real growth rate country ranks ]

GDP - per capita (PPP):
$18,200 (2018)
$16,700 (2017 est.)
$15,700 (2016 est.)
note: data are in 2017 dollars
country comparison to the world (CIA rank, may be based on non-current data): 96
[see also: GDP - per capita country ranks ]
[see also: GDP - per capita country ranks ]

Gross national saving:
45.8% of GDP (2017 est.)
45.9% of GDP (2016 est.)
47.5% of GDP (2015 est.)
country comparison to the world (CIA rank, may be based on non-current data): 6
[see also: Gross national saving country ranks ]
[see also: Gross national saving country ranks ]

GDP - composition, by end use:
household consumption: 39.1% (2017 est.)
[see also: GDP - composition, by end use - household consumption country ranks ]
government consumption: 14.5% (2017 est.)
[see also: GDP - composition, by end use - government consumption country ranks ]
investment in fixed capital: 42.7% (2017 est.)
[see also: GDP - composition, by end use - investment in fixed capital country ranks ]
investment in inventories: 1.7% (2017 est.)
[see also: GDP - composition, by end use - investment in inventories country ranks ]
exports of goods and services: 20.4% (2017 est.)
[see also: GDP - composition, by end use - exports of goods and services country ranks ]
imports of goods and services: -18.4% (2017 est.)
[see also: GDP - composition, by end use - imports of goods and services country ranks ]

GDP - composition, by sector of origin:
agriculture: 7.9% (2017 est.)
[see also: GDP - composition, by sector of origin - agriculture country ranks ]
industry: 40.5% (2017 est.)
[see also: GDP - composition, by sector of origin - industry country ranks ]
services: 51.6% (2017 est.)
[see also: GDP - composition, by sector of origin - services country ranks ]

Agriculture - products:
world leader in gross value of agricultural output; rice, wheat, potatoes, corn, tobacco, peanuts, tea, apples, cotton, pork, mutton, eggs; fish, shrimp

Industries:
world leader in gross value of industrial output; mining and ore processing, iron, steel, aluminum, and other metals, coal; machine building; armaments; textiles and apparel; petroleum; cement; chemicals; fertilizer; consumer products (including footwear, toys, and electronics); food processing; transportation equipment, including automobiles, railcars and locomotives, ships, aircraft; telecommunications equipment, commercial space launch vehicles, satellites

Industrial production growth rate:
6.1% (2017 est.)
country comparison to the world (CIA rank, may be based on non-current data): 40
[see also: Industrial production growth rate country ranks ]
[see also: Industrial production growth rate country ranks ]

Labor force:
806.7 million (2017 est.)
note: by the end of 2012, China's working age population (15-64 years) was 1.004 billion
country comparison to the world (CIA rank, may be based on non-current data): 1
[see also: Labor force country ranks ]
[see also: Labor force country ranks ]

Labor force - by occupation:
agriculture: 27.7%
[see also: Labor force - by occupation - agriculture country ranks ]
industry: 28.8%
[see also: Labor force - by occupation - industry country ranks ]
services: 43.5% (2016 est.)
[see also: Labor force - by occupation - services country ranks ]

Unemployment rate:
3.9% (2017 est.)
4% (2016 est.)
note: data are for registered urban unemployment, which excludes private enterprises and migrants
country comparison to the world (CIA rank, may be based on non-current data): 48
[see also: Unemployment rate country ranks ]
[see also: Unemployment rate country ranks ]

Population below poverty line:
3.3% (2016 est.)
note: in 2011, China set a new poverty line at RMB 2300 (approximately US $400)
[see also: Population below poverty line country ranks ]
[see also: Population below poverty line country ranks ]

Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: 2.1%
[see also: Household income or consumption by percentage share - lowest 10% country ranks ]
highest 10%: 31.4% (2012)
note: data are for urban households only

Distribution of family income - Gini index:
46.5 (2016 est.)
46.2 (2015 est.)
country comparison to the world (CIA rank, may be based on non-current data): 31
[see also: Distribution of family income - Gini index country ranks ]
[see also: Distribution of family income - Gini index country ranks ]

Budget:
revenues: 2.553 trillion (2017 est.)
[see also: Budget - revenues country ranks ]
expenditures: 3.008 trillion (2017 est.)
[see also: Budget - expenditures country ranks ]

Taxes and other revenues:
21.3% (of GDP) (2017 est.)
country comparison to the world (CIA rank, may be based on non-current data): 141
[see also: Taxes and other revenues country ranks ]
[see also: Taxes and other revenues country ranks ]

Budget surplus (+) or deficit (-):
-3.8% (of GDP) (2017 est.)
country comparison to the world (CIA rank, may be based on non-current data): 152
[see also: Budget surplus (+) or deficit (-) country ranks ]
[see also: Budget surplus (+) or deficit (-) country ranks ]

Public debt:
47% of GDP (2017 est.)
44.2% of GDP (2016 est.)
note: official data; data cover both central and local government debt, including debt officially recognized by China's National Audit Office report in 2011; data exclude policy bank bonds, Ministry of Railway debt, and China Asset Management Company debt
country comparison to the world (CIA rank, may be based on non-current data): 111
[see also: Public debt country ranks ]
[see also: Public debt country ranks ]

Fiscal year:
calendar year

Inflation rate (consumer prices):
1.6% (2017 est.)
2% (2016 est.)
country comparison to the world (CIA rank, may be based on non-current data): 88
[see also: Inflation rate (consumer prices) country ranks ]
[see also: Inflation rate (consumer prices) country ranks ]

Central bank discount rate:
2.25% (5 December 2017 est.)
2.25% (31 December 2016 est.)
country comparison to the world (CIA rank, may be based on non-current data): 117
[see also: Central bank discount rate country ranks ]
[see also: Central bank discount rate country ranks ]

Commercial bank prime lending rate:
4.35% (31 December 2017 est.)
4.35% (31 December 2016 est.)
country comparison to the world (CIA rank, may be based on non-current data): 160
[see also: Commercial bank prime lending rate country ranks ]
[see also: Commercial bank prime lending rate country ranks ]

Stock of narrow money:
$8.351 trillion (31 December 2017 est.)
$7.001 trillion (31 December 2016 est.)
country comparison to the world (CIA rank, may be based on non-current data): 1
[see also: Stock of narrow money country ranks ]
[see also: Stock of narrow money country ranks ]

Stock of broad money:
$8.351 trillion (31 December 2017 est.)
$7.001 trillion (31 December 2016 est.)
country comparison to the world (CIA rank, may be based on non-current data): 1
[see also: Stock of broad money country ranks ]
[see also: Stock of broad money country ranks ]

Stock of domestic credit:
$27.34 trillion (31 December 2017 est.)
$23.02 trillion (31 December 2016 est.)
country comparison to the world (CIA rank, may be based on non-current data): 1
[see also: Stock of domestic credit country ranks ]
[see also: Stock of domestic credit country ranks ]

Market value of publicly traded shares:
$7.335 trillion (December 2016 est.)
$8.234 trillion (December 2015 est.)
$8.518 trillion (31 est.)
country comparison to the world (CIA rank, may be based on non-current data): 2
[see also: Market value of publicly traded shares country ranks ]
[see also: Market value of publicly traded shares country ranks ]

Current account balance:
$164.9 billion (2017 est.)
$202.2 billion (2016 est.)
country comparison to the world (CIA rank, may be based on non-current data): 3
[see also: Current account balance country ranks ]
[see also: Current account balance country ranks ]

Exports:
$2.49 trillion (2018)
$2.216 trillion (2017 est.)
$1.99 trillion (2016 est.)
country comparison to the world (CIA rank, may be based on non-current data): 1
[see also: Exports country ranks ]
[see also: Exports country ranks ]

Exports - partners:
US 19.2%, Hong Kong 12.2%, Japan 5.9%, South Korea 4.4% (2018)

Exports - commodities:
electrical and other machinery, including computers and telecommunications equipment, apparel, furniture, textiles

Imports:
$2.14 trillion (2018)
$1.74 trillion (2017 est.)
$1.501 trillion (2016 est.)
country comparison to the world (CIA rank, may be based on non-current data): 2
[see also: Imports country ranks ]
[see also: Imports country ranks ]

Imports - commodities:
electrical and other machinery, including integrated circuits and other computer components, oil and mineral fuels; optical and medical equipment, metal ores, motor vehicles; soybeans

Imports - partners:
South Korea 9.7%, Japan 8.6%, US 7.3%, Germany 5%, Australia 4.9% (2018)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
$3.236 trillion (31 December 2017 est.)
$3.098 trillion (31 December 2016 est.)
country comparison to the world (CIA rank, may be based on non-current data): 1
[see also: Reserves of foreign exchange and gold country ranks ]
[see also: Reserves of foreign exchange and gold country ranks ]

Debt - external:
$1.598 trillion (31 December 2017 est.)
$1.429 trillion (31 December 2016 est.)
country comparison to the world (CIA rank, may be based on non-current data): 14
[see also: Debt - external country ranks ]
[see also: Debt - external country ranks ]

Stock of direct foreign investment - at home:
$1.523 trillion (31 December 2017 est.)
$1.391 trillion (31 December 2016 est.)
country comparison to the world (CIA rank, may be based on non-current data): 7
[see also: Stock of direct foreign investment - at home country ranks ]
[see also: Stock of direct foreign investment - at home country ranks ]

Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad:
$1.383 trillion (31 December 2017 est.)
$1.227 trillion (31 December 2016 est.)
country comparison to the world (CIA rank, may be based on non-current data): 10
[see also: Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad country ranks ]
[see also: Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad country ranks ]

Exchange rates:
Renminbi yuan (RMB) per US dollar -
7.76 (2017 est.)
6.6446 (2016 est.)
6.2275 (2015 est.)
6.1434 (2014 est.)
6.1958 (2013 est.)