China has not set a target for economic growth in the new five-year plan

China's decision not to set itself the goal of economic growth under the new five-year plan will give politicians more room to adapt to uncertainties and respond to change. This was announced on Monday by the high representative of the state planning commission. China, unlike its previous plan of 2016, did not include any specific economic growth targets in its economic plan for 2021-2025, which it presented to lawmakers on Friday (March 5). However, it has committed itself to keep growth within a "reasonable" range over a five-year period. And this year, it has set itself the goal of increasing gross domestic product (GDP) by more than 6%. Last year, it had to lower its target after the new coronavirus pandemic broke out at the beginning of the year. Hu Zhuhai, deputy director of the National Commission for Development and Reform, said at a press conference on the sidelines of parliament on Monday that the annual economic growth target would allow China to manage all kinds of risks more actively and easily and to respond more flexibly than five-year targets. He added that it would also help guide government agencies to focus on increasing the quality and efficiency of economic growth. "We are convinced that GDP will maintain a certain level (over the next five years)," he said. He also said that Beijing's unemployment, energy and carbon targets for 2021-2025 were linked to GDP. China's goal is to keep the unemployment rate around 5.5% between 2021 and 2025 and to reduce energy intensity by 13.5% over that period.