Tax data show steady growth

China's industrial enterprises and broader national economy have demonstrated steady growth and robust resilience during the first five months of the year. Driven by innovation, high-quality development and a green transition, the country's economic trajectory continues its upward momentum, according to official tax and statistical data.

Invoice data released by the State Taxation Administration show that the sales revenue of national industrial enterprises grew by 6.8 percent year-on-year from January to May, signaling a robust and steady economic recovery across the manufacturing landscape.

"Tax big data reflect a steady growth in the sales revenue of industrial enterprises, with new growth drivers such as equipment manufacturing and high-tech industries playing a prominent leading role," said Li Ping, deputy director of the tax science and research institute under the STA. "The continuous and deepening transition toward green and low-carbon development demonstrates the solidifying foundation and improving quality of China's industrial economy, which further consolidates the country's upward economic momentum."

Breaking down the tax data, equipment manufacturing continued to serve as the "ballast stone" of the industrial sector. During the five-month period, the sector's sales revenue grew by 8 percent year-on-year, accounting for 46.8 percent of the total manufacturing industry. Highlighting the steady push toward high-end manufacturing, the sales revenue of computer and communication equipment, instruments and meters, and special equipment rose by 15.6 percent, 10.5 percent, and 8.8 percent, respectively.

Artificial intelligence is also significantly accelerating the intelligent transformation of the industrial sector. From January to May, the sales revenue of robots and smart in-vehicle equipment surged by 27.7 percent and 46.3 percent year-on-year, respectively. Meanwhile, the country's green energy transition gathered further pace. Sales revenue from clean energy sources — represented by wind, solar, hydro and nuclear power — jumped 18.9 percent, accounting for 38.1 percent of the total power production sales revenue.

This strong industrial performance provided a solid foundation for the broader macroeconomy in May, which remained resilient despite external and internal headwinds.

"In May, despite the complex and volatile international environment, the lingering spillover effects of geopolitical conflicts in the Middle East, and extreme weather conditions such as high temperatures and heavy rainfall in some domestic regions impacting market supply and demand, various regions and departments effectively implemented proactive macroeconomic policies," said Fu Linghui, chief economist of the National Bureau of Statistics.

He noted that production and supply have grown steadily, and the national economy has maintained a generally stable development trend, moving toward new and higher-quality growth.

According to the NBS, industrial production witnessed steady expansion with an enhanced role of innovation. In May, the value-added industrial output of enterprises above a designated size rose by 4.5 percent year-on-year, accelerating by 0.4 percentage points from the previous month. Equipment manufacturing effectively served as a crucial pillar for this acceleration, with its value-added output surging by 9.5 percent year-on-year in May, contributing nearly 80 percent to the overall growth of above-designated-size industrial value-added output.

Beyond the industrial sector, the service industry also demonstrated robust momentum, driven by modern and producer services.

renqi@chinadaily.com.cn