China said its economy expanded by 5% last year, meeting Beijing's official target as a record trade surplus boosted growth.
The world's second-largest economy reached its goal despite growth slowing to 4.5% in the final three months of 2025.
China's past year has been marked by struggles to boost domestic spending, a prolonged property crisis and turmoil caused by US President Donald Trump's tariff policies.
Experts say the figures point to a "two-speed economy", with manufacturing and exports propping up expansion while people are still spending cautiously and the real estate market continues to weigh on the country.While China's official figures suggest it hit its growth goal, some analysts question the accuracy of the data given weak investment and consumer spending.
"We think growth is weaker than official figures suggest," said Zichun Huang, China economist at Capital Economics, who reckons the official numbers "overstate the pace of economic expansion" by at least 1.5 percentage points.
Also on Monday, data showed China registered the lowest number of births last year since records began in 1949.
The total number of births dropped to 7.9 million in 2025, figures from China's National Bureau of Statistics showed.
Economists said the falling birth rate will compound domestic challenges by weakening demand for housing and consumer goods, adding pressure to an already struggling property market.
Officials said the country's population declined for a fourth year in a row in 2025, falling 3.4 million to 1.4 billion.
The figures highlight China's deepening demographic crisis even as the government tries to boost birth rates by offering couples incentives to have more children.$BTC
