China’s five-year plan has evolved beyond a command-economy production schedule. It now represents a comprehensive vision for the country’s economic future, accompanied by strategies and policy guidelines.

The coming plan is likely to reinforce existing policies that prioritise production. Under themes such as “high-quality development” and “new quality productive forces”, China is striving to solidify its position as a dominant industrial power integrated into the global economy. Its share of global manufacturing, currently at 30 per cent, could increase as the country has a clear competitive advantage in this area.

At the same time, China is trying to remove so-called choke points in its supply chains, particularly in advanced chips. While its “whole nation” approach to addressing these vulnerabilities may lead to wasteful duplicate investments, the combination of state support and fierce market competition is enabling China to tackle one bottleneck after another.