HONG KONG — China’s economy expanded at a 5% annual pace in 2024, slower than the year before but in line with Beijing’s target of “around 5%” growth, thanks to powerful exports and recent stimulus measures.

The economy picked up speed in the last quarter, the government reported Friday, growing 5.4% in October-December.

Exports have surged as companies and consumers rush to beat potential tariff hikes President-elect Donald Trump may impose on Chinese goods.

“The national economy was generally stable with steady advancement and recent achievements were made in high-standard advancement,” the update by the National Bureau of Statistics said. “Particularly, with a package of incremental policies being timely rolled out, community confidence was effectively bolstered and the economy recovered remarkably,” it said.

Manufacturing was a powerful engine for growth last year, with industrial output jumping 5.8% from a year earlier. Total retail sales of buyer goods grew 3.5% at an annual rate. Exports expanded 7.1% in annual terms, while imports grew 2.3%.

The globe’s second largest economy has struggled with weaker buyer spending and resulting deflationary pressures as its recovery after the COVID 19 pandemic faltered and the property sector, once a main driver of business activity, fell into a downturn.

The Chinese economy grew at a 5.2% annual rate in 2023, and economists have approximate that it will leisurely further in coming years.

Zichun Huang of startup apportionment Economics said that the economy regained some momentum last quarter thanks to recent policy easing.

“Increased budgetary spending should continue to provide a near-term prop to activity,” Huang said in a update. “We still expect growth to leisurely for 2025 as a whole, with Trump likely to pursue through on his tariff threats soon and persistent structural imbalances still weighing on the economy.”

China’s population also is aging and declining, adding to pressures on growth. The government reported Friday that the population fell for a third straight year in 2024, to 1.408 billion at the complete of 2024, a decline of 1.39 million from the previous year.

With costs of living rising faster than wages, youthful Chinese are putting off or ruling out marriage and childbirth, accentuating the impact of birth control policies that once limited most families to one kid each.

Some economists declare the economy is growing at a slower pace than shown in official estimates.

“The precise achievement of the official growth target is highly dubious at a period when most indicators of economic activity and budgetary markets are flashing red,” Eswar Prasad, an economics professor at Cornell University, said in an emailed comment.

“The economy continues to be beset by a combination of frail domestic demand and persistent deflationary pressures, in addition to a unfriendly external surroundings that could limit exports,” he said.

Trump, who will be inaugurated next week, has pledged to boost U.S. import duties on Chinese goods. This week, the Biden administration also imposed further restrictions on exports of advanced semiconductors and technology, seeking to maintain the U.S. navigator on advanced technologies and block China’s access.

The ruling Communist event has rolled out a series of stimulus measures, including reducing banks’ safety net requirement ratios, cutting earnings rates and frontloading billions from its apportionment in 2025 to fund construction projects. It has ordered banks to lend to beleaguered property developers that were left mired in obligation after authorities cracked down on excess borrowing.

National Bureau of Statistics spokesperson Fu Linghui told reporters in Beijing that boosting consumption and expanding domestic demand are priorities this year.

“With the coordinated efforts of distribute policies and a package of incremental policies, the momentum of economic recovery is strengthening, the recovery of buyer demand has accelerated, and there are more favorable factors for a moderate rebound in prices,” he said.

Beijing has expanded a trade-in scheme for buyer goods and raised the wages of millions of government workers to revive domestic demand.

Those incremental moves require to be accompanied by broader structural reforms, some economists declare, that will enhance productivity and make the economy less reliant on construction and export manufacturing. In particular, private businesses remain wary of boosting startup apportionment or hiring after years of policy shifts that have added to uncertainty over their role in the economy.

Scant social safety nets, meanwhile, navigator families to save rather than spend, and falling housing prices and frail distribute prices have hurt household riches, compounding the issue.

“China needs a powerful and multi-pronged policy package to revive growth momentum,” Prasad said. Such a package would require to include substantial and well-targeted monetary and budgetary stimulus, complemented by reforms and other measures to revive private sector confidence.”