Balancing Industrial Upgrading and People's Livelihood Protection: Major Projects Under Construction Across Regions Proceed at Full Speed

Reporter Han Yu

On March 23, the Tianjin General Technology Tianduan Company’s thin-walled intelligent project, a key municipal construction project with a total investment of 320 million yuan, officially started construction. The project focuses on tackling key core technologies in high-end equipment manufacturing, aiming to develop, pilot, verify, and industrialize intelligent forming processes for complex thin-walled parts. Once completed, it will significantly enhance the company’s independent innovation capabilities in manufacturing high-precision, high-performance complex structural components.

This project is a microcosm of the intensive deployment and promotion of major projects across various regions. Since 2026, local governments have continued to expand effective investment, with steady progress in construction work. Experts interviewed generally agree that the accelerated implementation of major projects has played a role in stabilizing investment and benefiting people’s livelihoods, laying a solid foundation for high-quality economic development. Meanwhile, project layouts balance industrial upgrading and social welfare, continuously optimize investment structures, and strengthen funding guarantees.

Large scale, optimized structure, quick implementation

Since the beginning of this year, many regions have intensively deployed major projects. For example, on March 22, the Yunnan Development and Reform Commission announced that it recently released the list of the first batch of provincial major projects for 2026 and the “Key Projects” list (hereinafter referred to as the “Two Lists”). The “Two Lists” include 1,677 provincial major projects with a total investment of 2.57 trillion yuan, including 52 “Key Projects” with annual planned investments exceeding 1 billion yuan, totaling 891.4 billion yuan.

On March 19, the Jiangxi Development and Reform Commission issued a notice on the 2026 provincial key construction project plan, emphasizing “full efforts to accelerate the implementation of provincial key construction projects.” Jiangxi has arranged 486 key projects this year, with a total investment of 1.1364 trillion yuan and an annual planned investment of 264.7 billion yuan.

In Shaanxi Province, key projects in transportation, water conservancy, energy, and housing are progressing vigorously. It is understood that Shaanxi has arranged over 3,400 provincial and municipal key projects this year, with an annual planned investment of more than 680 billion yuan. Among them, over 2,000 projects are planned to start construction anew, and more than 1,400 projects are ongoing; 640 projects have been designated as provincial key projects.

“Since the beginning of this year, major project construction across regions has shown remarkable features such as large scale, optimized structure, rapid implementation, and strong synergy,” said Yuan Shuai, Deputy Director of the Investment Department at the China Urban Development Research Institute, in an interview with Securities Daily. Data from Yunnan, Shaanxi, Jiangxi, and other places show that their major projects not only maintain high numbers but also reach trillion-yuan levels in total investment, expected to generate strong scale effects.

“This year, major projects across regions are characterized by early start, fast progress, innovative structures, and large efforts,” said Zhu Huale, senior investment advisor at Jufeng Investment Information Co., Ltd. These projects can leverage upstream and downstream industry investments, stimulate private capital vitality, and provide strong support for stabilizing investment. They also inject continuous momentum into industrial upgrading, infrastructure improvement, and people’s livelihoods, contributing to high-quality economic development.

Focus on industrial investment orientation

The Securities Daily reporter noted that the investment directions of major projects this year also show new features.

For example, the “Two Lists” released by Yunnan highlight a strong focus on industrial and private investment. Of the projects included, 907 are corporate investment projects, accounting for 54%, with private enterprises investing in 365 projects totaling 288.8 billion yuan. There are 929 industrial projects, accounting for 55%, including 690 industrial projects with a total investment of 694.9 billion yuan. At the same time, the “Two Lists” also emphasize “investment in people,” with 365 major livelihood projects included, totaling 155.5 billion yuan, covering urban renewal, affordable housing, underground pipe network upgrades, social services, ecological protection, and other key areas.

Among Jiangxi’s 486 key projects, 476 are implementation projects and 10 are preparatory projects, covering infrastructure, industrial development, social welfare, and ecological protection. These projects focus not only on traditional infrastructure like transportation and energy but also on new infrastructure such as 5G and computing power. They aim to strengthen advantageous industries like electronics, new energy, and non-ferrous metals, and cultivate future industries such as hydrogen energy, solid-state batteries, and third-generation semiconductors.

“By 2026, major projects will showcase new highlights in investment structure and direction, with a focus on ‘new quality productivity-led, green and intelligent deep integration,’” Zhu Huale said.

“From the perspective of investment structure and direction, this year’s major projects across regions show a new trend of dual emphasis on ‘industry-driven’ and ‘deeply benefiting people’s livelihoods,’” Yuan Shuai added. The dominant role of industrial investment is increasingly evident—for example, in Yunnan, industrial projects account for up to 55%, indicating a shift from traditional infrastructure-led investment to industrial upgrading aimed at improving total factor productivity. The large proportion of industrial investment will enhance regional endogenous growth by strengthening supply chains. Additionally, “investment in people” remains an important feature of structural optimization.

It is also worth noting that the financial support for local major projects is increasing. Shaanxi has secured over 18 billion yuan in central policy funds, including more than 4 billion yuan from the “Two Supports” funds, over 5 billion yuan from the “Two New” funds, 4 billion yuan from central budget investments, and over 3 billion yuan from the second batch of new policy financial instruments.

Yuan Shuai pointed out that the precision in fund utilization has significantly improved. Shaanxi’s efforts to secure “Two Supports,” “Two New,” and new policy financial tools demonstrate a precise alignment of investment directions with national strategies. This project promotion system, led by government investment and supported by multiple funding sources across fields, provides stable momentum for the economy throughout the year. The structural layout balancing economic benefits and social welfare, traditional drivers and new quality productivity, is expected to form a new pattern of investment growth this year.