China - Gross capital formation (% of GDP)

Gross capital formation (% of GDP) in China was 43.54 as of 2020. Its highest value over the past 60 years was 46.66 in 2011, while its lowest value was 15.74 in 1962.

Definition: Gross capital formation (formerly gross domestic investment) consists of outlays on additions to the fixed assets of the economy plus net changes in the level of inventories. Fixed assets include land improvements (fences, ditches, drains, and so on); plant, machinery, and equipment purchases; and the construction of roads, railways, and the like, including schools, offices, hospitals, private residential dwellings, and commercial and industrial buildings. Inventories are stocks of goods held by firms to meet temporary or unexpected fluctuations in production or sales, and "work in progress." According to the 1993 SNA, net acquisitions of valuables are also considered capital formation.

Source: World Bank national accounts data, and OECD National Accounts data files.

See also:

Year Value
1960 39.58
1961 22.81
1962 15.74
1963 21.76
1964 24.35
1965 27.10
1966 30.45
1967 23.86
1968 24.94
1969 25.01
1970 32.87
1971 33.64
1972 31.25
1973 32.96
1974 33.21
1975 35.04
1976 33.22
1977 33.88
1978 37.60
1979 36.30
1980 34.61
1981 32.95
1982 31.98
1983 31.93
1984 34.38
1985 39.06
1986 37.73
1987 37.32
1988 39.08
1989 37.21
1990 34.16
1991 35.24
1992 39.07
1993 43.28
1994 40.05
1995 38.84
1996 37.54
1997 35.52
1998 34.81
1999 34.11
2000 33.57
2001 35.54
2002 36.15
2003 39.62
2004 41.85
2005 40.35
2006 39.91
2007 40.48
2008 42.27
2009 45.36
2010 46.56
2011 46.66
2012 46.23
2013 46.40
2014 45.82
2015 43.23
2016 42.63
2017 43.01
2018 43.79
2019 43.25
2020 43.54

Limitations and Exceptions: Because policymakers have tended to focus on fostering the growth of output, and because data on production are easier to collect than data on spending, many countries generate their primary estimate of GDP using the production approach. Moreover, many countries do not estimate all the components of national expenditures but instead derive some of the main aggregates indirectly using GDP (based on the production approach) as the control total. Data on capital formation may be estimated from direct surveys of enterprises and administrative records or based on the commodity flow method using data from production, trade, and construction activities. The quality of data on government fixed capital formation depends on the quality of government accounting systems (which tend to be weak in developing countries). Measures of fixed capital formation by households and corporations - particularly capital outlays by small, unincorporated enterprises - are usually unreliable. Estimates of changes in inventories are rarely complete but usually include the most important activities or commodities. In some countries these estimates are derived as a composite residual along with household final consumption expenditure. According to national accounts conventions, adjustments should be made for appreciation of the value of inventory holdings due to price changes, but this is not always done. In highly inflationary economies this element can be substantial.

Statistical Concept and Methodology: Gross domestic product (GDP) from the expenditure side is made up of household final consumption expenditure, general government final consumption expenditure, gross capital formation (private and public investment in fixed assets, changes in inventories, and net acquisitions of valuables), and net exports (exports minus imports) of goods and services. Such expenditures are recorded in purchaser prices and include net taxes on products.

Aggregation method: Weighted average

Periodicity: Annual

Classification

Topic: Economic Policy & Debt Indicators

Sub-Topic: National accounts