China's State Council has released a policy directive that sets a target of expanding the nation's services sector to 100 trillion yuan by 2030 - a scale the cabinet said would reflect "notable progress" in high-quality development of services. The document, issued on Tuesday, outlines a strategy to advance service-sector quality, strengthen job creation and raise consumption through a combination of demand-side measures, reforms, technological innovation and widened openness to external markets.
The government statement says growth will be driven by demand, reform, tech innovation and greater openness, while institutional barriers will be removed and market forces better aligned with government support. It adds an explicit aim to cultivate more internationally recognised and globally competitive "China Services" brands.
Official statistics cited in the plan put the services sector at 80.89 trillion yuan in 2025, up 5.4% year-on-year. The policy frames the services sector as a lever for industrial upgrading, household welfare and employment expansion, and sets out priorities to strengthen both business-facing and consumer-facing subsectors.
Sectors highlighted for development
The roadmap identifies a cluster of business services targeted for reinforcement: R&D support services, logistics, software development, supply-chain finance and green services. On the consumer side, the government intends to upgrade retail, healthcare, elderly care, childcare, tourism and cultural services to better meet household needs and to stimulate spending.
The document also promises stepped-up fiscal and financial support. Measures listed include loan interest subsidies, the use of relending instruments, government investment funds and expanded use of real estate investment trusts focused on services-sector assets. The policy language indicates an intention to coordinate market signals and public backing more closely while lowering institutional frictions that constrain service providers.
Context in Beijing's policy approach
Earlier this month President Xi Jinping urged a demand-driven strategy complemented by reform and technological empowerment to promote the service sector. Beijing has signalled a shift toward prioritising services this year as authorities seek to reallocate some stimulus away from transport, housing and industrial infrastructure investments toward areas viewed as potentially more productive.
The government acknowledges a persistent challenge: weak consumer demand has weighed on the economy and existing measures have so far not reversed that trend. While services spending has outpaced goods consumption growth in recent years, the report notes that per-capita services consumption remains well below levels in developed economies. In 2025, per-capita services consumption accounted for 46.1% of total consumption, compared with roughly 70% in the United States, according to figures cited in the policy paper.
China's new five-year plan is also referenced, with its pledge to "significantly" raise the share of household consumption in the economy from around 40% at present, but without setting a specific target. The policy document reiterates the objective of leveraging the services sector to support broader economic rebalancing.
Exchange rate reference
The policy release includes an exchange-rate note: $1 = 6.8159 Chinese yuan renminbi.
The plan lays out a comprehensive adjustment of priorities rather than a single instrument, combining measures to boost demand, reduce institutional obstacles and channel public support through fiscal and financial tools to stimulate growth in both business and consumer services over the remainder of the decade.