China Accelerates Service Sector Push as Policy Implementation Gains Speed

China's economic planners reported accelerated implementation of policies aimed at expanding and upgrading the country's service sector during a joint press briefing on September 29. According to officials from the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), the People's Bank of China, and the Ministry of Natural Resources, over 60 percent of the 131 key tasks set for 2026 and 2027 have recorded measurable progress. Services accounted for 66.1 percent of economic growth in the first half of the year, supported by targeted domestic consumption initiatives, credit channel guidance, and broadened foreign access pilots in value-added telecommunications.

The service industry has become the primary pillar of China's economic expansion and a vital buffer against external demand volatility. Demonstrating momentum in policy rollout—spanning land revitalization, targeted lending, and relaxed foreign ownership thresholds—is intended to shore up private sector confidence and foster domestic consumption amid broader structural transitions.

China is accelerating policy rollouts and opening measures across its service sector, according to officials at a joint press briefing convened by the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) in Beijing on September 29. Speaking at the briefing, Li Chunfang, deputy director of the NDRC's Department of Industry Development, stated that services contributed 66.1 percent to China's economic growth in the first half of the year, representing an increase of 5.9 percentage points compared to the same period last year. Official expectations for business activity in the service sector have remained above the 55 percent benchmark for five consecutive months since April, pointing to sustained expansion. The push follows a national service sector conference convened in April, after which the NDRC and 40 related ministries drew up a roster of 131 key tasks spanning 2026 and 2027. Over the past six months, relevant authorities have enacted 81 supporting measures, with more than 60 percent of the prioritized tasks achieving clear progress. At the local level, 27 provincial-level jurisdictions have held local conferences or released policy guidelines to support service expansion. On the supply and consumption front, authorities reported expanding programs such as nationwide elderly care consumption subsidies, 18 measures targeting rural and lower-tier consumer markets, and specific incentives supporting recreational vehicle consumption. Cultural and lifestyle services also expanded during the summer, including extended operating hours at 1,200 museums and more than 30,000 regional cultural tourism events. The sector's external trade and investment indicators also showed expansion. During the first seven months of the year, spending by inbound travelers in China rose 27.8 percent year-on-year, while service exports grew 17.1 percent, helping narrow China's service trade deficit by approximately 16 percent. Additionally, 91 foreign-invested firms were admitted to value-added telecommunications business pilots since the April conference, bringing the total number of approved pilot entities to 221. Representatives from the Ministry of Natural Resources and the People's Bank of China also addressed measures to repurpose underutilized land and steer financial resources toward service enterprises. Moving forward, the NDRC stated it would focus on element guarantees, fine-tuned policy supply, and differentiated supervision across industry segments to consolidate the sector's operational momentum.