'China Opportunity 2.0' knocks for global economy

Growth resilience

A key pillar of China Opportunity 2.0 is the resilience and steady growth prospects of the world's second-largest economy, which are providing greater certainty for global businesses and reinforcing confidence in long-term investment and development amid a more volatile external environment.

China's economy expanded 4.7 percent year-on-year in the first half of 2026, with GDP reaching 69.57 trillion yuan ($10.28 trillion), keeping the economy on track to meet the government's full-year growth target of 4.5 to 5 percent, according to data released by the National Bureau of Statistics in mid-July.

"China's economic performance remained within an appropriate range in the first half, with new growth drivers gaining momentum," said Mao Shengyong, deputy head of the NBS.

Putting China's growth in a global context, Huang Hanquan, head of the Chinese Academy of Macroeconomic Research, said the performance is particularly noteworthy at a time when high inflation and elevated interest rates are weighing on the world economy and overall global growth is losing momentum.

"Against such a backdrop, maintaining growth at this pace is no small achievement," Huang said at a seminar hosted by the academy in Beijing last month.

Zhu Feng, China chief economist and head of Greater China Economic Research at JPMorgan, told China Daily that he expects the Chinese economy to grow around 4.6 percent this year and meet the official growth target.

"High-tech and advanced manufacturing, AI (artificial intelligence)-related exports, renewable energy and public investment should remain key sources of manufacturing resilience, while exports continue to support growth," Zhu added.

Goldman Sachs has also forecast China's economy will grow by 4.6 percent this year, with exports remaining a key source of resilience thanks to the country's strong manufacturing competitiveness.

The International Monetary Fund struck an optimistic note in July, raising its 2026 growth forecast for the Chinese economy by 0.2 percentage point from its April projection to 4.6 percent, making China one of the few major economies to receive an upward revision.

For multinational corporations with deep operations in China, that resilience is more than a macroeconomic story — it is increasingly reflected in day-to-day business activity.

Willie Tan, CEO of Skechers China, South Korea and Southeast Asia, said China has demonstrated strong structural resilience amid a complex global environment, with the quality of growth continuing to improve.

For United States-based athleisure company Skechers, that resilience is visible in recovering foot traffic at major commercial districts and outlet malls, growing demand for performance sports products and steady sales growth supported by omnichannel integration, Tan said.

"China's vast market, well-developed supply chains and steadily improving business environment are delivering tangible returns for global companies," Tan added.

Similar confidence is evident among the broader business community. An annual member survey released in June by the US-China Business Council found that 95 percent of respondents considered China "somewhat to very important" for staying globally competitive.

Foreign investment is also showing signs of stabilization. Data from the Ministry of Commerce showed that China's actual use of foreign direct investment totaled 402.14 billion yuan in the first half of this year, with the decline narrowing by 10.2 percentage points compared with the same period last year. In June alone, the actual use of FDI increased 15.1 percent year-on-year, marking the second consecutive month of growth.

Rogier Janssens, president of Merck China, said the latest first-half figures were consistent with what he had observed on the ground: solid momentum in high-end manufacturing and resilient trade in high-value-added products — trends that point to the emergence of China Opportunity 2.0.

To gauge the resilience of China's economy, one needs to look beyond the headline GDP figures and examine where the growth is coming from, Janssens said.