The 21-member Politburo, the highest decision-making body of the Chinese Communist Party, convened a meeting on Thursday (30 July), chaired by President Xi Jinping in his capacity as General Secretary of the CPC Central Committee, to analyze and study the current economic situation as well as to plan economic work for the second half of the year.
Following the conclusion of the meeting, this top decision-making body pledged to accelerate government spending and implement gradual policies to stimulate China's economic growth in the second half of 2026, after the economy's second-quarter growth slowed more than expected and volatility in global stock markets rose sharply.
China's economy grew 4.3% in the second quarter, its slowest pace in more than three years, and fell below the full-year minimum target set at between 4.5% and 5.0%.
The Xinhua News Agency reported that the Politburo acknowledged the "difficulties and challenges the economy is facing" at the meeting, while also pledging to step up efforts to stimulate domestic consumer demand — without specifying concrete steps — and signaled that it would move to address price wars among manufacturers, who have been competing fiercely for market share even at the expense of profits.
However, the Chinese government's efforts to stimulate the economy remain constrained, as it continues to try to rein in excess industrial capacity — a latent pressure that has been pushing prices of goods and services lower — while at the same time pressuring heavily indebted local governments to try to spend within their existing budgets.
Several economists believe that accelerating already-budgeted national infrastructure projects will help stabilize growth over the coming months without increasing the fiscal deficit.
At this meeting, the body also resolved to hold the Fifth Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee in Beijing in October 2026.
