China's GDP increased 2.3 percent to 101.60 trillion yuan ($15.67 trillion) last year, the National Bureau of Statistics revealed on Monday.

Despite the grave and complex environment posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, economic growth rose back to a pre-pandemic rate of 6.5 percent in the fourth quarter, with full-year GDP exceeding 100 trillion yuan for the first time.

China is expected to be the only major economy to secure positive growth in the pandemic-ravaged year. How did China make this happen?

Experts say the growth benefited from macro policies.

On the one hand, China's tax and fee cuts totaled over 2.5 trillion yuan in 2020, or 2.5 percent of GDP. This provided smaller enterprises with much-needed cash flow and left money for consumption.

On the other, last year also witnessed one of the strongest fiscal expansions, with a deficit of 3.76 trillion yuan.

This 3.7 percent deficit rate not only ensured a reasonable stimulus, but also avoided excessive risk.

China also issued 1 trillion yuan special anti-pandemic government bonds to enterprises and people at the grassroots level.

In general, the expansion of fiscal expenditure was crucial to stimulating consumption and stabilizing investment, consumption and employment.

As China embarks on a new journey to build a modern socialist country and promote constant economic recovery and high-quality development, this growth had a special domestic and global significance.

Domestically, the growth marked the continuous enhancement of China's comprehensive national strength, constantly improving scientific and technological strength and significantly increased industrial and agricultural production capacity.

In 2020, China’s per capita GDP exceeded US $10,000 for the second consecutive year, ranking among upper middle-income countries, and the development gap with high-income countries continues to narrow.

Scientific and technological achievements continued to emerge in 2020 and injected vitality into high-quality economic development.

Chang'e-5 successfully landed on the moon and returned with samples. The Tianwen-1 Mars probe was successfully launched. The Beidou-3 global satellite navigation system was completed.

Internationally, China’s growth injected fresh impetus into a potential world economic recovery as the global economy entered a deep recession and the pandemic pushed a possible 100 million people back toward extreme poverty.

China has also made the utmost efforts to unswervingly implement high-level opening-up and promote international cooperation and win-win results by signing the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) in 2020.

China completed investment agreement negotiations with the European Union as scheduled and announced that it would consider joining the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP). China also promoted high-quality construction of the Belt and Road Initiative.

In the years ahead, China will continue to open and participate in the global economy. As China accelerates the establishment of a new dual circulation development paradigm – in which internal and external circulations reinforce each other with domestic circulation as the mainstay – this new paradigm will continue to promote mutual benefits and contribute to the common prosperity of all countries.