Ranking first in total GDP and fiscal revenue: Guangdong leads the way continuously. How will it strive next?

Guangdong remains the top provincial economy in China.

During the Two Sessions of Guangdong Province, economic data was released: In 2025, Guangdong's GDP reached 14.58 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 3.9%, and its total volume has led the country for 37 consecutive years. Not only is it the top in terms of economy, but Guangdong also ranks first in many aspects such as foreign trade, industry, fiscal revenue, and population.

Specifically, last year, Guangdong's total value of goods imports and exports reached 9.49 trillion yuan, contributing 24.1% of the country's total increment. The new driving forces of the industry are strong. The production of drones and industrial robots accounts for 90% and 40% of the national total respectively. The fiscal revenue is nearly 1.4 trillion yuan, remaining the highest for 35 consecutive years. The number of newborns has exceeded one million for 6 consecutive years.

On the basis of achieving many "number - one" rankings, the ceiling of Guangdong's development is still rising. The main expected goal for Guangdong in 2026 is to achieve a regional GDP growth of 4.5% - 5%, and strive for better results in actual work. The local general public budget revenue is expected to grow by about 3%, and the growth of residents' income will be in sync with economic growth.

2026 is the first year of the 15th Five - Year Plan. How can Guangdong achieve its established goals? Where are the new areas of focus? More importantly, in the face of fierce competition, what will help it maintain its leading position?

Foreign Trade Remains the Top in the Country

As the frontier of China's opening - up, Guangdong's economy is deeply integrated with the global industrial chain and market.

In the past year, despite challenges such as global trade frictions, Guangdong's foreign trade still achieved better - than - expected development. In 2025, the province's total value of foreign trade imports and exports reached 9.49 trillion yuan, remaining the top in the country for 40 consecutive years and contributing 24.1% of the national increment in foreign trade.

Structurally, the driving forces for Guangdong's foreign trade growth are more diverse and balanced.

On the export side, high - tech products have become the main force, with the annual export value exceeding one trillion yuan for the first time, reaching 1.14 trillion yuan. Among them, the growth rates of drones, 3D printers, and industrial robots all exceeded 30%. On the import side, the potential of domestic demand continues to be released, and the import value of integrated circuits accounts for nearly 40% of the province's total import value.

In addition, the combination of new business models and logistics channels has injected new impetus into Guangdong's foreign trade.

With the full implementation of the policy of "tax refund upon departure and final settlement after sales" for cross - border e - commerce exports to overseas warehouses, Guangdong can "buy from the world and sell to the world" faster and at a lower cost. The export of cross - border e - commerce through overseas warehouses increased by 9.8 times throughout the year, significantly improving capital turnover and trade efficiency.

Regional cooperation and the logistics network are becoming increasingly smooth, supporting the efficient flow of goods. For example, in 2025, the total value of goods imported and exported through the Hong Kong - Zhuhai - Macao Bridge exceeded 300 billion yuan for the first time, a year - on - year increase of 40.1%, and the channel effect is significant.

In fact, the competitiveness of Guangdong's foreign trade lies in its ability to produce high - quality products.

Data shows that in 2025, Guangdong's industry is becoming smarter and more high - end, with more than half of industrial enterprises above the designated size belonging to advanced manufacturing. The production of high - tech products represented by drones and industrial robots accounts for 90% and 40% of the national market respectively.

Taking industrial robots as an example, at the press conference on the achievements of Foshan during the 14th Five - Year Plan, Liu Jie, member of the Standing Committee of the Foshan Municipal Party Committee and Executive Deputy Mayor, revealed that Foshan has built the largest industrial robot production base in the country, and one out of every 14 industrial robots in the country is produced in Foshan.

Behind this leading position is that Foshan has built a complete industrial chain from "core components - robot bodies - system integration", attracting more than 3,000 robot - related enterprises to cluster, forming a strong industrial cluster effect. This is a vivid microcosm of the transformation of Guangdong's manufacturing industry from "large" to "strong".

In addition, continuous investment in scientific and technological innovation is also the key for Guangdong to maintain its competitiveness.

Statistics show that Guangdong's social R & D investment has ranked first in the country for 9 consecutive years. The government work report of Guangdong Province mentioned that in 2025, the expected R & D investment intensity of the whole society will reach 3.6%. The "Shenzhen - Hong Kong - Guangzhou" innovation cluster has ranked first in the world, forming a complete industry - university - research system and a wide - ranging international scientific and technological cooperation network.

However, while achieving remarkable results, challenges still exist. Previously, a special meeting on accelerating the construction of a modern industrial system in Guangdong Province pointed out that small and medium - sized enterprises still face bottlenecks such as "lack of technology, talent, experience, and the ability to tolerate mistakes" in the digital transformation process. The insufficient coordination of the industrial chain and the lack of policy precision also limit the overall upgrading speed.

Focus on the Low - Altitude Economy

At the new starting point of the 15th Five - Year Plan, Guangdong has set its GDP growth target for 2026 at 4.5% - 5% and will strive for better results in actual work.

To achieve the goal, where will Guangdong's new growth drivers come from? Facing the intensifying regional competition, what is Guangdong's confidence to maintain its leading position in the country?

According to the government work report, Guangdong's development in 2026 will focus on the two main lines of "opening - up" and "innovation".

Specifically, the former aims to strengthen the advantages of global resource allocation and cross - border circulation, while the latter focuses on meeting social needs and seizing the forefront of science and technology. In terms of implementation, Guangdong needs to accelerate the cultivation and expansion of new specialized economic forms such as headquarters economy, platform economy, low - altitude economy, silver - haired economy, building economy, and port economy.

Taking the low - altitude economy as an example, the low - altitude economy industry has been included in the suggestions of Guangdong's 15th Five - Year Plan and ranks first among the 8 special columns, indicating its strategic importance.

Statistics show that the scale of Guangdong's low - altitude economy has reached the level of hundreds of billions. On this basis, Guangdong will be guided by high - frequency, low - cost, high - reliability, and multi - scenario low - altitude flights, deepen reforms to release more airspace resources, improve the supporting systems such as regulations and standards and airworthiness certification, and cultivate new forms of the low - altitude economy.

Why does Guangdong attach so much importance to the low - altitude economy? Xie Baojian, a professor at the School of Economics of Jinan University and the deputy director of the Institute of Special Economic Zones and Hong Kong and Macao Economics, said in an interview with a reporter from Time Weekly that the core lies in its connection with both consumption and industry.

Xie Baojian believes that as a major consumer province, Guangdong is exploring the potential of domestic demand through the integration of agriculture, culture, tourism, sports, and commerce, and the low - altitude economy can create new consumption scenarios such as "air sightseeing". For example, during the low - altitude flight consumption week in Chongqing during the May Day holiday in 2025, it directly drove consumption of more than 200 million yuan, which is a proof.

On the industrial side, applications represented by unmanned freight can not only significantly reduce logistics costs and improve efficiency but also relieve the resource shortage of large - scale airports and open up a path for the construction of the future urban air traffic system in smart cities.

In addition, Xie Baojian added that Guangdong's confidence also lies in relying on the Guangdong - Hong Kong - Macao Greater Bay Area, a major national strategic platform. The 2026 government work report of Guangdong mentioned that the integration of the Greater Bay Area has been deepened, and the synergistic advantages have been continuously released.

In recent years, the integration achievements of the three regions of Guangdong, Hong Kong, and Macao have become more solid. The scale of Hong Kong and Macao residents participating in insurance and studying in Guangdong has continued to expand. The engine role of major cooperation platforms such as Hengqin, Qianhai, Hetao, and Nansha has been accelerating. "This increasingly deep - rooted synergistic advantage provides a complete ecological support from technology R & D, institutional innovation to market application for new business forms such as the low - altitude economy, which is Guangdong's irreplaceable competitiveness," said Xie Baojian.

This article is from the WeChat official account "Time Weekly" (ID: timeweekly), author: Alimire. It is published by 36Kr with authorization.