China: Adjusted net savings, excluding particulate emission damage (% of GNI)

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2021, China's adjusted net savings, excluding particulate emission damage (% of GNI) rose 1.01 percentage points on 2020 (from 15.79% to 16.81%).

Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1991 to 2020), the average change was −0.01 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 1.78 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.6 standard deviations above that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 3.23 percentage points in 1991 and the biggest yearly fall was 4.22 percentage points in 2011. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2012 to 2021 the straight-line trend is downward, about 0.75 percentage points a year. A straight line explains 92% of the movement over 10 observed years.

Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.

A straight-line projection, tested first

Extending that straight line gives about 13.01% for 2024. We show this only because the same method, fitted on earlier years, predicted 2019 to 2021 better than "no change" would have: its average miss was 0.93%, against 1.49% for assuming no change. Treat it as a continuation of the recent pattern, not a forecast of events: it cannot see a recession, a policy change or a revision to the data.

See how a linear trend forecast works and the guide on forecasting without fooling yourself.

How it compares

In 2021, China had the 28th highest value of the 121 economies reporting that year. Higher is not always better: for some indicators the lowest value is the one to aim for. See the full ranking.

Closest to China in the 2021 ranking

• Paraguay — 24th of 121: 17.87%
• Korea, Rep. — 25th of 121: 17.86%
• Costa Rica — 26th of 121: 17.04%
• India — 28th of 121: 16.59%
• Estonia — 29th of 121: 16.55%
• Switzerland — 30th of 121: 16.19%

What this measures

Adjusted net savings are equal to net national savings plus education expenditure and minus energy depletion, mineral depletion, net forest depletion, and carbon dioxide. This series excludes particulate emissions damage. This indicator is expressed as a percentage of Gross National Income (GNI) which is the total income earned by all residents within an economic territory during an accounting period. It is equal to gross domestic product plus earned income receivable from abroad minus earned income payable abroad.

Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a weighted average.

All 32 values

Adjusted net savings, excluding particulate emission damage (% of GNI) in nearby economies

• Australia — 6.44% (2021)
• Brunei Darussalam — 24.05% (2021)
• Cambodia — 17.87% (2021)
• Fiji — 5.18% (2020)
• Indonesia — 11.32% (2021)
• Japan — 3.63% (2021)
• Kiribati — 32.25% (2020)
• Korea, Rep. — 17.86% (2021)
• Lao PDR

More economic policy & debt data for China

• Exports of goods and services (current US$) — US$4.11 trillion (2025)
• Exports of goods and services (current LCU) — 29.54 trillion (2025)
• Exports of goods and services (% of GDP) — 21.07% (2025)
• Imports of goods and services (current US$) — US$3.29 trillion (2025)
• Imports of goods and services (current LCU) — 23.67 trillion (2025)
• Imports of goods and services (% of GDP) — 16.89% (2025)
• External balance on goods and services (current US$) — US$816.19 billion (2025)
• External balance on goods and services (current LCU) — 5.87 trillion (2025)
• External balance on goods and services (% of GDP) — 4.19% (2025)

Reading data like this

• Where to find free public data, and how to check it before you trust it — 2 min read
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Questions people ask

What is China's adjusted net savings, excluding particulate emission damage (% of GNI)?

16.81% in 2021, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1990?

It is up 0.86 percentage points from 15.95% in 1990. The highest value was 27.57% in 2009 and the lowest 15.79% in 2020.

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator NY.ADJ.SVNX.GN.ZS, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Staff estimates, World Bank (WB); The Changing Wealth of Nations: Measuring Sustainable Development in the New Millennium, World Bank (WB) Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.

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