China’s top city economies set 2024 GDP growth targets above 5%, signalling road ahead despite headwinds
- China’s economy grew by 5.2 per cent year on year in 2023, and some of its leading cities have already signalled their intentions for the year ahead
- Nanjing, the capital city of Jiangsu province, and Guangzhou, the capital of Guangdong province, have fixed their 2024 growth targets at above 5 per cent
At least five of China’s top urban economies have set their 2024 growth targets at above 5 per cent, even as questions persist over Beijing’s ability to handle an ongoing property slump, a mounting debt burden, a declining population and external headwinds.
China has 25 cities, mainly scattered in coastal regions, with an annual economic size of over 1 trillion yuan (140 billion) – equivalent to the gross domestic product (GDP) of Slovakia – and they hold the hopes of Beijing to elevate the 126-trillion-yuan economy to a higher level.
The eastern city of Ningbo, which has the world’s busiest seaport, set an economic growth target of around 6 per cent for 2024 during the annual session of its People’s Congress.
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Hefei, another city in eastern China, set a growth target of around 6 per cent. It is aiming to establish itself as China’s answer to the so-called Motor City of Detroit in the United States as it is home to Volkswagen, Nio and BYD research centres.