China has revised its 2023 gross domestic product (GDP) upward by 2.7%, bringing the total to 129.4 trillion yuan (approximately $17.73 trillion), according to Kang Yi, head of the National Bureau of Statistics, at a press conference in Beijing on Thursday.
This adjustment reflects new data from China’s fifth National Economic Census, which highlighted increased business activity and employment in the secondary and tertiary industries by the end of 2023, compared to 2018.
However, the census data also revealed a significant 27% decline in the number of people employed by property developers, which fell to 2.71 million by the end of 2023, down from 2018 figures. This decline is a continuation of the downturn in China’s property sector, which has faced persistent challenges over the past few years.
While the revision increases the nominal GDP for 2023, its impact on real GDP, which adjusts for price changes, remains unclear. In January, China had reported a 5.2% growth in GDP for 2023. This upward revision could potentially enhance the real GDP growth for the year, though it may also add pressure on the country to maintain robust economic expansion in 2024.
China had set a growth target of around 5% for 2024, but economic challenges, including a prolonged property slump and weak domestic consumption, particularly in the final quarter of 2023, have prompted the government to ease monetary policy and boost fiscal spending to sustain growth.
Further details on the revision are expected to be released by the statistics bureau in the coming days.
With input from Reuters and Market Watch.
