Tuesday, March 11, 2025 — The Asia Society Policy Institute’s Center for China Analysis (CCA) has published “Key Takeaways from China’s Two Sessions in 2025,” a collection of analyses by CCA experts: Neil Thomas, Fellow on Chinese Politics; Lizzi C. Lee, Fellow on Chinese Economy; Lyle Morris, Senior Fellow on Foreign Policy and National Security; G.A. Donovan, Fellow on Chinese Society and Political Economy; and Li Shuo, Senior Fellow and Director of the China Climate Hub.

The authors share their insights on last week’s concurrent meetings of China’s legislature, the National People’s Congress (NPC), and its political advisory body, the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC). Highlights included Premier Li Qiang’s Government Work Report (GWR) to the NPC on March 5 as well as meetings between President Xi Jinping and NPC and CPPCC delegates. The outcomes broadly met the expectations outlined in a preview article co-authored by Neil Thomas and Jing Qian, CCA Co-Founder and Managing Director.

“The Two Sessions showed that Beijing wants to bolster business and consumer confidence to consolidate China’s long post-COVID economic recovery,” writes Neil Thomas. “Despite Xi’s authoritarian, statist, and nationalist preferences—all of which continue to influence policymaking—he is pragmatic enough to realize the need to preserve at least a baseline level of development. Xi knows that without economic growth, he cannot achieve his dream of China’s ‘national rejuvenation.’”

According to Lizzi C. Lee, Li Qiang’s GWR delivered all the expected promises: supporting entrepreneurs, curbing arbitrary crackdowns, and clearing overdue payments to private firms, while also indicating Beijing’s commitment to “going all in” on technological development. “Li’s stress on ‘enhancing the overall efficiency of the national innovation system’ signals a deliberate shift—China is not just throwing money at high-tech; it is orchestrating for maximum efficiency,” she says.

On foreign policy, Lyle Morris observes that “Li’s language about Taiwan did not include any shifts in Beijing’s policy towards Taipei.” Meanwhile, during his annual press conference on March 7, Foreign Minister Wang Yi foreshadowed a harder line toward the United States, offering “unusually fiery answers” on Donald Trump’s approach to trade with China.

G.A. Donovan emphasizes that social stability remains a top priority for China’s leaders, and a series of violent incidents across the country in 2024 raised alarms in Beijing. “Li Qiang’s GWR pledged to do more to resolve disputes at the grassroots level and strengthen policing and surveillance to prevent major security incidents," he writes.

There were few surprises from the NPC regarding energy and climate. “China’s NPC has pushed climate action to the backburner. The real test of Beijing’s commitment will come later this year with the announcement of its 2035 carbon reduction targets under the Paris Agreement,” notes Li Shuo.

Read the full reaction piece here. Members of the media interested in contacting the authors should reach out to [email protected].

For more analysis of the Two Sessions analysis from CCA experts, watch last week’s webinar on Li Qiang’s GWR featuring Neil Thomas, Lizzi C. Lee, Michael Hirson, and Guoguang Wu.