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China economic focus July 2026: AI and the next phase of China’s growth
*Please note that this report only includes an Excel data file if this is indicated in "What's included" below
Report summary
China’s AI sector is accelerating while overall economic growth dips. We expect the country’s GDP growth to slow to 4.5% in 2026, but the core AI industry will grow by 30%. Investment in AI infrastructure, applications in service and manufacturing will support China’s growth in stages. However, the AI sector is still a small part of the whole economy. AI enthusiasm across governments and investors may be a distraction from addressing other important issues that are slowing down domestic economic growth.
Table of contents
- Executive summary
- AI is accelerating as traditional investment weakens
- AI is moving from digital services to physical industry
- Appendix
Tables and charts
This report includes the following images and tables:
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Tech companies' capex, US vs ChinaToken usage by applications
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Retail sales of goods and servicesWood Mackenzie's proprietary China dataManufacturing PMIIndustrial production and retail salesTradeInflationPropertyInvestmentMoney supply (M2)
- 1 more item(s)...
What's included
This report contains:
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