"Chinese President Xi Jinping, one of the key leaders within the BRICS group of nations, delivers his New Year message to the country to welcome 2026 on Wednesday, December 31. Xi's annual address traditionally looks back on key developments from the previous year while setting the tone for China’s goals in the year ahead. The BRICS group has gone from strength to strength over the course of 2025, welcoming 10 new partner nations - Belarus, Bolivia, Cuba, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Thailand, Uganda, Uzbekistan, Nigeria and Vietnam - as well as Indonesia as a full member. The organisation now covers half the world's population and a third of the global economy. "