Shanghai Targets Top Three Global City Status

Shanghai's draft 15th Five-Year Plan (2026–30), unveiled at the municipal people's congress this week, sets an average annual GDP growth target of about 5 percent to push GDP beyond 7 trillion yuan by 2030 and aim for a top-three global city ranking. The plan raises R&D spending to over 5 percent of GDP, seeks core digital industries above 20 percent, and prioritizes AI, semiconductors, biomedicine and smart factories.