According to the government work report submitted by the Governor of Guangdong Province to the third session of the 14th People’s Congress of Guangdong Province on January 15, 2025, the province’s gross domestic product (GDP) is expected to exceed 14 trillion yuan in 2024. This marks the 36th consecutive year that Guangdong ranks first in China. In addition, the province’s total imports and exports rose 9.8% year-on-year to over 9 trillion yuan, also setting a new record.
In 2024, the two sessions of the Canton Fair (spring and autumn) attracted around 500,000 buyers from abroad – a new high. Guangzhou and Shenzhen were selected as pilot cities to enable the establishment of fully foreign-funded hospitals. Amazon Global Selling opened its first Asia-Pacific innovation center in the Qianhai Shenzhen-Hong Kong zone for Shenzhen’s modern service industry to help Chinese e-commerce companies grow internationally.
Thanks to the province’s strong industrial development, especially in the manufacturing sector, the “Made in Guangdong” has stood out in the global market. While the domestic real estate sector has undergone a profound adjustment, Guangdong’s manufacturing industry has seen steady growth. It effectively filled the economic gaps and further strengthened the foundation of the real economy. In 2024, the added value of industrial enterprises above a set size increased by 4.2% year-on-year, and the industrial sector contributed about 50% of the province’s GDP growth.
In Guangdong, industry and technology reinforce each other and new productive forces are emerging with great dynamism. The province’s research and development (R&D) investment intensity is about 3.6%. Guangdong is home to around 77,000 high-tech companies and six national manufacturing innovation centers. The province has ranked first nationally in terms of a region’s comprehensive innovation capacity for eight consecutive years. The Shenzhen-Hong Kong-Guangzhou science and technology cluster has been ranked second in the world for five years.
Currently, Guangdong’s total economic volume accounts for about one-tenth of the national total, while the industrial scale covers about one-eighth of the country. The 4.2 percent increase in the added value of industrial enterprises above the specified size in Guangdong makes a strong contribution to the stability of the country’s industrial base. In 2024, one out of four new energy cars, 2.2 out of five industrial robots, and two out of five smartphones manufactured in China came from Guangdong. The size of Guangdong’s foreign trade accounted for more than a fifth of the national total and contributed nearly 40% to the growth of the country’s foreign trade. The province’s local general public budget revenue reached 1.35 trillion yuan, ranking first for 34 consecutive years. Central government tax revenue from Guangdong was the highest in the country. A total of 1.43 million new jobs were created in urban areas, exceeding the annual target of 1.1 million set by the central government. In addition, 43.86 million workers from outside the province remained in employment. Guangdong also continued to promote and expand industries with distinctive strengths at the county level. About 700 new industrial projects have been implemented on 15 major platforms, with a total investment of about 300 billion yuan.
In 2024, 54 Greater Bay Area (GBA) standards were published and 187 cross-border administrative services were introduced, which are commonly required. The Shenzhen-Zhongshan Link and the Huangmaohai Sea Crossing Passage were opened to traffic. In addition, 4.5 million vehicles passed the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge towards Guangdong.
Guangdong, which has ranked first in the country in terms of GDP for 36 years, is expected to continue achieving success in the future.
Those: Guangdong Province