China achieved major strategic success in response to COVID-19 in 2020, being the world's only major economy to grow, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang said in a government report issued Friday morning.

Reviewing a year that saw China battle against COVID-19, Premier Li said the government formulated and implemented macro policies to meet the urgent needs of market entities and kept the fundamentals of the economy stable. China gave top priority to stabilizing employment and living standards in 2020, Premier Li said, effectively safeguarding people's well-being.

China made a stream of scientific and technological breakthroughs in 2020, including the Tianwen-1 Mars mission, said the Chinese premier. The country embraced breakthroughs, which also included the Chang'e-5 lunar mission and the Fendouzhe (Striver) deep-sea manned submersible, he noted.

Efforts were intensified to make breakthroughs in core technologies in key fields and the government supported the application of sci-tech advances and encouraged collaborative innovation among small, medium-, and large enterprises, Li added.