GUANGZHOU - China's manufacturing heartland, Guangdong province, has set a GDP growth target of between 4.5 percent and 5 percent for 2026, Guangdong Governor Meng Fanli said Monday, pledging efforts to achieve better results in actual work.

The year 2026 marks the start of China's 15th Five-Year Plan (2026-2030). Meng said the growth target was set after taking into account development needs and a range of domestic and external factors, as he delivered a government work report at the annual session of the Guangdong Provincial People's Congress.

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Over the past five years, the southern province's GDP rose to 14.58 trillion yuan ($2.1 trillion) from 11.37 trillion yuan. In 2025, the province ranked first nationwide in total GDP for the 37th consecutive year.