In numbers: China’s economic highlights of 2022

Against the backdrop of a complex and changing international landscape and the daunting task of reform, development and stability at home, China has made remarkable achievements in economic and social development in 2022.

Over 650 billion kg: China sees bumper grain harvests for eight consecutive years

China saw a bumper grain harvest this year, despite the impact of extreme weather. The country’s grain output totaled about 686.53 billion kg this year, up 0.5 percent or 3.68 billion kg compared to 2021. This is the eighth consecutive year that China has registered a grain harvest of over 650 billion kg.

A farmer dries corn in Anqing township, Songshan district, Chifeng city, north China’s Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. (Photo/Li Fu)

Furthermore, the area sown with grain in the country reached over 1.78 billion mu (118.33 million hectares) in 2022, an increase of 0.6 percent over the previous year.

“The grain harvest this year has helped to keep overall economic stability and major economic indicators running within a reasonable range,” said Wang Guirong, director of the rural department of the National Bureau of Statistics, adding that China’s grain harvest has made positive contributions to stabilizing the global food market and food security.

Over 100 billion parcels: delivery sector demonstrates China’s strong economic resilience

China’s courier sector saw its delivery volume exceed 100 billion parcels on Dec. 1, seven days earlier than in 2021, according to data from the State Post Bureau of China. This hard-won achievement indicated the sound development of the Chinese courier industry and the resilience of the country’s economy.

China’s huge express delivery network boasts a total mileage of 43 million kilometers and 410,000 service stations, and serves nearly 700 million people on a daily basis.

In particular, 100 million of the parcels were shipped to and from rural areas. At present, express delivery services are available in 90 percent of all Chinese administrative villages. Thanks to constantly improving rural logistics and commercial facilities, more and more agricultural products have been brought to the national market, and a growing number of industrial products are flowing to the countryside, further activating the vitality of rural consumption.

More than 52,000 old urban residential communities across China take on a new look

Renovations began on 52,100 old residential communities in China’s urban areas between January and October 2022, benefiting over 8.59 million households across the country, according to data from the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development (MOHURD).

Photo shows a renovated residential community in Xiakou township, Nan’an district, southwest China’s Chongqing Municipality. (Photo/Guo Xu)

The renovation work is not only about upgrading hardware, but also improving “software”. In the first 10 months of this year, 51,600 kilometers of aging water pipes, cables, gas pipes, caliducts and communication wires across the country were upgraded. During the same period, China installed 12,300 elevators and 20,700 electric car charging piles, added 619,600 parking spaces, and built 5,694 community-based elderly care, childcare and other service facilities.

In the past 10 years, China has started renovating over 160,000 old urban residential communities, benefiting more than 28 million households. Renovation projects for around 219,000 old urban residential communities built before 2000 are expected to be finished during the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-2025).

Floorage of China’s green buildings make up over 90 percent of all new buildings

By the end of the first half of 2022, the floorage of China’s green buildings accounted for over 90 percent of all new buildings, data from MOHURD showed. In 2021, the total floorage of newly built green buildings across the country exceeded 2 billion square meters, compared with only 4 million square meters in 2012.

4 percent: China’s average monthly payment for pensioners raised again

Since Jan. 1, 2022, the average monthly payment for pensioners of enterprises, government agencies and public institutions was raised by 4 percent from the 2021 level, said a circular jointly issued by departments including the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security (MHRSS).

China’s national social security fund has 2.6 trillion yuan in strategic reserves, and the central government has replenished social security funds with 1.68 trillion yuan in state-owned funds. Officials with the MHRSS have stressed on many occasions that China is capable of paying pension benefits on time and in full.

6 million units: production and sales of new energy vehicles booming

According to data released by the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers, China produced and sold over 6.25 million and nearly 6.07 million new energy vehicles in the first 11 months of this year. Both the figures doubled year on year.

A worker is busy on a new energy vehicle production line at a workshop of Nanjing Chang’an Automobile Co., Ltd. in Nanjing city, east China’s Jiangsu Province. (Photo/Zhu Hongsheng)

Nearly 2.79 million cars were exported between January and November 2022, representing a 55.3 percent year-on-year growth, the association said.

Nearly 9,000 “little giant” companies reflect China’s vibrant economy

To date, China has named 8,997 small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) as “little giant” companies. The term represents the novel elites of China’s SMEs that specialize in a niche market, boast cutting-edge technologies and show great potential. These “little giant” companies have served as an important cornerstone for the high-quality development of advanced manufacturing.

An employee produces lithium battery materials at a “little giant” company in Longnan, a county-level city administered by Ganzhou city, east China’s Jiangxi Province, Dec. 24, 2022. (Photo/Zhu Haipeng)

Over 2.2 million 5G base stations enable every county to access 5G services

China has built the world’s largest 5G network with the most advanced technology. As of the end of September this year, the country had built 2.22 million 5G base stations, and every county enjoys access to 5G, according to a white paper issued by the China Academy of Information and Communications Technology (CAICT).

Workers adjust an antenna at a 5G base station in Xuba township, Tongling city, east China’s Anhui Province. (People’s Daily/Guo Shining)

Meanwhile, new business forms and models such as smart agriculture, rural e-commerce, and telemedicine have emerged in counties and rural areas, injecting strong impetus into China’s high-quality economic development.

Over 100 million kilowatts: installed capacity of renewable energy keeps rising

Data showed that from January to November 2022, China’s newly installed capacity of renewable energy reached 113.69 million kilowatts, an increase of 28.15 million kilowatts compared to the same period of the previous year.

Wang Dapeng, deputy director of the new energy and renewable energy department of China’s National Energy Administration, said the country will promote the high-quality development of renewable energy during the 14th Five-Year Plan period.

China’s digital economy registers $7.1 trillion, showing strong momentum

China’s digital economy reached $7.1 trillion in 2021, ranking second in the world, according to a white paper on the global digital economy recently issued by CAICT.

From 2012 to 2021, the digital economy’s share of the country’s GDP increased from 21.6 percent to 39.8 percent.

The industrial internet has spread to 45 major categories of the national economy, and the scale of the industrial internet industry has exceeded 1 trillion yuan.