NDRC Flags Active Fiscal Policy, Increased Spending on New Infrastructure in 2021

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China’s chief planning authority has outlined a raft of its policy intentions for 2021, as the national economy continues to recover from the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) has just published a paper pointing out that in 2021 China will “continue to implement active fiscal policy and steady monetary policy, and maintain the required vigour of support for economic recovery.”

NDRC highlighted a slew of other key goals for 2021 including:

  • Expanding the vigour of investment in new infrastructure.
  • Accelerating the development of intra-urban and metropolitan railways in the Jing-Jin-Ji, Yangtze River Delta and Greater Bay Regions.
  • Prevention and dissolution of financial risk.
  • Use of a reform mentality and market-based methods to dispose of the problem of companies defaulting on debt.
  • Steadily driving financial innovation.

The paper pointed to the need to “drive human-focused new urbanisation, drive upgrades in the functional quality of large and medium-sized cities, and effectively resolve the outstanding accommodation problems of major cities.”

The Chinese government also plans to drive the development of clean and renewable energies including hydropower, wind and solar, as part of efforts to meet peak carbon and carbon neutrality targets.