Published: 10:25, October 20, 2025 | Updated: 15:12, October 20, 2025
China's GDP expands 5.2% y-o-y in first three quarters
By Xinhua
People view the landmark buildings of Pudong New Area on April 14, 2025. (CHEN MENGZE / FOR CHINA DAILY)

BEIJING - China's gross domestic product (GDP) grew 5.2 percent year-on-year in the first three quarters of 2025, data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showed Monday.

China's GDP reached over 101.5 trillion yuan (about $14.3 trillion) in the first three quarters, NBS data showed.

In the third quarter, the country's GDP expanded 4.8 percent year-on-year.

The tertiary industry expanded 5.4 percent year-on-year in the first three quarters, outpacing a 3.8 percent increase of the primary industry and a 4.9 percent increase of the second industry.

On a quarterly basis, China's economy expanded 1.1 percent in the third quarter, according to the NBS.

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Since the beginning of the year, China's economic development has withstood pressure and achieved hard-won, remarkable progress, said a spokesperson with the NBS, adding that economic operation has maintained overall stable performance with steady growth.

The country's per capita disposable income reached 32,509 yuan during the January-September period, marking a 5.2 percent year-on-year increase after deducting price factors.

China's fixed-asset investment dropped 0.5 percent year on year to about 37.2 trillion yuan in the first three quarters.

Industrial output up 6.2% 

In the first nine months of this year, China's value-added industrial output increased by 6.2 percent compared to the same period last year. In September, the output expanded 6.5 percent year on year, with manufacturing and mining sectors posting rapid growth.

The industrial output is used to measure the activity of large enterprises, each with an annual main business turnover of at least 20 million yuan (about $2.82 million).

Industrial humanoid robots are presented at an industrial park in Liuzhou, Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region, on June 18, 2025. (PHOTO / XINHUA)

A breakdown of the data showed that the manufacturing sector's value-added output increased by 7.3 percent year-on-year last month, while that of mining grew by 6.4 percent. The value-added output of the electricity, heat, gas, and water production and supply sector rose by 0.6 percent.

According to Wang Xin, an official with the NBS, the industrial sector still faces challenges such as weak effective demand and subdued corporate profitability.

In the next phase, Wang said, China will intensify efforts to build a new development paradigm, accelerate the commercialization of scientific research outcomes, and expand high-quality supply, fostering new drivers for domestic demand and bolstering the foundation for stable industrial expansion.

Retail sales hit 36.59 trillon yuan 

China's retail sales of consumer goods went up 4.5 percent year on-year in the first three quarters of 2025, data from the NBS showed.

The country's retail sales of consumer goods totaled 36.5877 trillion yuan (about $5.16 trillion) during the period, data from the NBS showed.

The growth rate was 1.2 percentage points higher than that during the same period last year, said Yu Jianxun, an official with the NBS.

In September, retail sales rose 3 percent year-on-year.

As policy measures to boost service consumption took effect, pent-up demand was released, which translated into stronger market growth, Yu said.

Consumers are seen at a retail complex operated by Pangdonglai in Xuchang, Henan province, on April 28, 2025. (NIU SHUPEI / FOR CHINA DAILY)

In the first three quarters, retail sales in the service sector rose 5.2 percent year-on-year, outpacing the growth rate of goods retail sales by 0.6 percentage points.

From January to September, retail sales of consumer goods in urban areas rose 4.4 percent year-on-year, while retail sales in rural areas expanded 4.6 percent year-on-year.

Online retail sales remained a bright spot, climbing 9.8 percent year-on-year in the first nine months, the NBS data showed.

Supported by consumption-boosting policies this year, the supply of goods and services has improved, steadily unleashing demand and leading to an expanded and upgraded consumer market, according to Yu.

Yu also noted that there is still room to boost the consumption appetite of households and unlock their spending potential.

To foster high-quality development of the consumer market, efforts should focus on implementing consumption-boosting measures, stabilizing employment and incomes, creating diverse consumption scenarios, and expanding service consumption, Yu said.

Disposable income up 5.1%

China's per capita disposable income posted steady growth in the first three quarters of 2025, supported by overall economic stability and a stable job market, official data showed.

The country's per capita disposable income stood at 32,509 yuan (about $4,580) in the first nine months of this year, up 5.1 percent year-on-year in nominal terms, while representing an increase of 5.2 percent after deducting price factors, according to the NBS.

Median per capita disposable income nationwide was 27,149 yuan during the period, an increase of 4.5 percent year-on-year.

Customers browse smartphones with government subsidies at a shopping mall in Jiaxing, Zhejiang province, on June 27, 2025. (JIN PENG / FOR CHINA DAILY)

Incomes of rural residents increased 5.7 percent year-on-year in nominal terms, maintaining a faster growth rate than that of urban residents, which rose 4.4 percent over the same period, said Zhang Yi, an official with the NBS.

Meanwhile, China's per capita consumption expenditure came in at 21,575 yuan, up 4.6 percent year- on-year in nominal terms and increasing by 4.7 percent after deduction of price factors.

Consumer spending on services maintained solid growth, accounting for 46.8 percent of total consumption expenditure, the data showed.

In the next phase, China will step up efforts to maintain stability in the job market, promote steady growth in people's incomes, and strengthen residents' capacity and willingness to consume, Zhang said.

Service output up 5.4% in first three quarters

China's value-added service output rose to nearly 59.3 trillion yuan in the first three quarters, accounting for 58.4 percent of GDP, 0.8 percentage points higher than that in the same period last year.

The index gauging the country's service industry output rose 5.6 percent year-on-year in September, maintaining rapid growth, said Peng Yongtao, an official with the NBS. 

Job market stable

China's job market remained generally stable in the first three quarters of this year, with the surveyed urban unemployment rate standing at 5.2 percent in September, down 0.1 percentage points from August.

In the first three quarters of this year, the surveyed urban unemployment rate was 5.2 percent on average, according to the NBS.

College graduates gather information at an employer's stand during a job fair held in Chongqing, on June 10, 2025. (PHOTO / VCG)

Employment among key groups remained generally stable, while some service sectors, such as transportation, accommodation and catering, and culture and sports entertainment, saw improvement in employment in the third quarter, boosted by pro-employment policies and strong summer tourism, said Wang Pingping, an official with the NBS.

Amid mounting external uncertainties and instabilities, structural challenges in employment have been relatively pronounced, Wang said, adding that China will step up pro-employment policies to help maintain stability in the job market.

China has set a target for a surveyed urban unemployment rate of around 5.5 percent in 2025 and aims to create over 12 million new urban jobs within the year.

Home price declines continue

China's 70 large and medium-sized cities in general continued to see narrowed year-on-year home price declines in September, official data showed.

The NBS said in a statement that the prices of new homes in four top-tier cities -- Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen -- decreased by 0.7 percent from a year ago, a smaller decline than the 0.9 percent drop recorded in August. Notably, Shanghai, the country's economic hub, recorded a 5.6 percent rise.

Other cities logged slower declines likewise. New home prices in second-tier cities went down 2.1 percent compared with a year ago and third-tier cities saw a 3.4 percent decrease, both narrowing by 0.3 percentage points from the previous month.

The NBS data also showed the margin of year-on-year price declines of existing homes moderated across all major cities.

On a month-to-month basis, the overall downward trend continued in both new and second-hand home prices in major cities, according to the NBS.