The leadership of China, one of the most powerful countries on the planet, is faced with new tests as economic growth has slowed in the first half of the 2020s. How did China get to this point? Where is it headed in 2024 and beyond?
China’s leadership entered the 21st century more confident than ever in its destiny as a future economic superpower. The country’s nominal gross domestic product (GDP) surpassed the European powers in the first decade of the new Millennium. China leapfrogged Italy in 2000,
France in 2005, the United Kingdom in 2006, and finally Germany, Europe’s largest economy, by 2007. In 2010, it surpassed Japan. Now, China and the United States sit firmly as the top two economies on the planet, both rivalled only by the combined strength of the European Union.
On Tuesday, January 16, 2024, it was announced that China’s economy grew at a faster rate during the October-December quarter. This allowed the Chinese government to hit its 5% annual growth target for 2023. That was a big win for the country’s leadership to close out the year. However, China’s trade data and its ongoing economic recovery are still a work in progress.
China’s leadership has sought to move away from its over-reliance on government stimulus to drive economic growth in the 21st century. It remains to be seen if China will be able to deliver on its goals under these stipulations for the remainder of this decade.
