On the 10th, high-frequency data from various fields such as investment, consumption, foreign trade, and industrial production were released in January, reflecting the latest trend of economic operation at the beginning of 2026. The reporter learned from the Big Data Development Department of the National Information Center of the National Development and Reform Commission that in January, the winning bid amount for projects related to the construction of new infrastructure such as computing power centers and software and hardware development increased by 11.6% year-on-year, reflecting active investment in cutting-edge fields such as the digital economy; The year-on-year growth rates of commodity consumption and service consumption have increased by 2.3 and 0.6 percentage points respectively compared to December 2025, and the popularity of various consumption scenarios has increased. High frequency data such as construction machinery operating rate are micro indicators reflecting the current investment project construction enthusiasm. In January, the operating rate of construction machinery increased by 3.3 percentage points year-on-year, the operating rate of cement mills increased by 9.3 percentage points year-on-year, and the apparent consumption of steel increased by 29.2% year-on-year, both of which were recent highs. Since the beginning of the year, various investment stabilization policies have been put in place, coupled with factors such as the delayed Spring Festival, resulting in a rapid progress in the formation of physical workloads, providing solid support for a good start to the economy. ”Xing Yuguan, Deputy Director of the Comprehensive Department of the Big Data Development Department of the National Information Center of the National Development and Reform Commission, said. The winning bid data of the project reflects the momentum of investment. In January, the winning bid amount for projects related to the construction of new infrastructure such as computing power centers and software and hardware development increased by 11.6% year-on-year. Since the fourth quarter of last year, a series of policies have been implemented to stabilize investment, from the completion of the launch of 500 billion yuan of new policy financial instruments to the addition of 200 billion yuan of special bond quotas specifically for supporting investment and construction in some provinces. Among them, projects in the fields of digital economy and artificial intelligence have received key support from new policy based financial instruments. Experts predict that the investment pull effect of new policy based financial instruments and other investments launched last year will be concentrated and released this year. From the data of project winning bids in January, it can be seen that there is strong investment vitality in cutting-edge fields such as digital economy, which injects vitality into the optimization of investment structure and the conversion of kinetic energy. ”Xing Yuguan said. As another engine of domestic demand growth, at the beginning of the new year, both commodity consumption and service consumption have shown good growth momentum, and the popularity of various consumption scenarios has increased. According to offline consumption big data, the consumption amount in January increased by 2.4% year-on-year, an increase of 1.5 percentage points compared to December 2025. Among them, commodity consumption and service consumption increased by 3.6% and 1.0% year-on-year, respectively, an increase of 2.3 and 0.6 percentage points compared to December 2025. According to the payment data from Caiqianba, which reflects the consumption heat of small and micro merchants, the related consumption payment amount in January increased by 2.1% year-on-year, an increase of 1.7 percentage points compared to December 2025. The policy of promoting consumption continues to be effective, consolidating residents' willingness to consume and market confidence, and further strengthening the role of consumption as the main engine of economic growth. ”Xing Yuguan said. In terms of foreign trade, the average daily port cargo throughput in January increased by 6.0% year-on-year, an increase of 3.5 percentage points compared to December 2025, indicating a significant improvement in shipping logistics. By 2025, the total value of China's foreign trade imports and exports will exceed 45 trillion yuan, reaching a historic high. Faced with the complex and ever-changing international environment, China's imports and exports still achieved a rapid growth of 3.8%, which is the ninth consecutive year of growth and the longest continuous growth since China's accession to the WTO. Goldman Sachs' Chief China Economist, Shanhui, stated that China's exports will continue to show resilience in 2025, attributed to strong growth in exports to emerging market economies and the increasing competitiveness of Chinese products. The expected resilience of China's exports this year is related to three factors, including the rapid expansion of exports from emerging market economies, China's dominant position in key mineral sectors, and greater growth potential for high-tech exports. In terms of industrial production, due to factors such as the delayed Spring Festival, the operating rate of major industrial products in January increased by 4.7 percentage points year-on-year. The operating vitality index of start-up enterprises and the operating vitality index of technology innovation enterprises increased by 29.9% and 27.9% year-on-year, respectively. According to patent data, the number of patent authorizations related to strategic emerging industries in China increased by 1.1% year-on-year in January, with the number of patent authorizations related to artificial intelligence increasing by 29.8% year-on-year. The innovation momentum in cutting-edge fields is good, and the cultivation and growth of related new quality productivity is accelerating. (New Society)