Output and industry value added
The main table reports GDP and value added across the primary, secondary and tertiary industries, with more detailed economic activities below them. Absolute amounts use units of 100 million yuan. Annual GDP is reported as 1,401,879 of those units, equivalent to 140,187.9 billion yuan. The table keeps the fourth quarter and whole year in separate columns, making the reporting period part of each observation.
Prices and rates of change
Absolute values are calculated at current prices, while growth rates use constant prices. The release reports annual real growth of 5.0 percent and fourth-quarter year-on-year growth of 4.5 percent. These figures answer different questions: the annual measure describes the year against the preceding year, while the quarterly measure compares one quarter with its counterpart a year earlier.
Seasonal adjustment and comparison
Separate historical tables present year-on-year and quarter-on-quarter growth. The latter removes seasonal effects before comparing adjacent quarters. The annex describes adjustments for moving holidays and calendar changes, including Chinese New Year. Seasonal adjustment therefore concerns patterns in a time series; it is not the same operation as converting current prices to constant prices.
Preliminary estimates and revisions
The annex explains that early GDP accounting uses information available shortly after a quarter ends. More complete annual information, economic censuses and methodological changes can lead to routine or comprehensive revisions. The release also describes checks on source data and consistency between related aggregates. These procedures form part of how the published series is maintained.
Release date: 21 January 2026. The estimates concern Q4 and 2025 and are explicitly preliminary. Later verification and updates to seasonal adjustment may change earlier observations. The figures describe production within the national-accounting framework, rather than directly measuring household distribution or the quality of public services.
Original source: National Bureau of Statistics of China.
Related reading: Economy and Development · Using the Sources.