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News> Business> Content
Friday, October 19, 2018, 17:59
China's GDP grows 6.7% in first 3 quarters
By Xinhua
Friday, October 19, 2018, 17:59 By Xinhua

In this undated photo, industrial robots move production material in a factory of Wenzhou Ruiming Industrial Co Ltd in Ruian. (PHOTO / XINHUA)

BEIJING - China's gross domestic product (GDP) expanded 6.7 percent year on year in the first three quarters of 2018 to about 65.09 trillion yuan (about US$9.38 trillion), data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showed Friday.

The pace was in line with market expectations and higher than the government's annual growth target of around 6.5 percent.

In the third quarter, China's GDP rose 6.5 percent from a year ago, compared to a 6.7-percent increase in the second quarter, the NBS said in a statement.

ALSO READ: China manufacturing activity expansion slows in September

The economy has expanded in a reasonable range and maintained a trend of overall stability and steady progress, the statistical authority said, while acknowledging that the country faces more external challenges and rising downward pressure.

The service sector gained 7.7 percent year on year in the January-September period, picking up from a 7.6-percent increase in the first half, and outpacing 3.4 percent in primary industry and 5.8 percent in secondary industry.

In the third quarter, China's GDP rose 6.5 percent year on year, lower from 6.7 percent in the second quarter

China's industrial output up 6.4%

China's value-added industrial output, an important economic indicator, expanded 6.4 percent year-on-year in the first three quarters of 2018, the NBS said Friday.

The growth rate was 0.3 percentage points lower than in the first half.

In September, industrial output increased 5.8 percent year on year, down 0.3 percentage points from August.

Industrial output measures the activity of certain large enterprises with an annual revenue of at least 20 million yuan (about US$2.9 million).

In the first three quarters, manufacturing output expanded 6.7 percent year on year, mining output rose 1.8 percent, while the production and supply of electricity, thermal power, gas, and water posted the fastest growth of 10.3 percent among the three major sectors.

New industries posted faster expansion, with the output of high-tech industries, equipment manufacturing and strategic emerging industries rising 11.8 percent, 8.6 percent and 8.8 percent, respectively, according to NBS spokesperson Mao Shengyong.

During the first three quarters, the production index for the country's service sector rose 7.8 percent year on year, down 0.2 percentage points from H1.

"The industrial and service sectors saw overall stable output and relatively fast growth in profits," Mao said at a press conference.

In the first eight months of the year, major industrial firm profits gained 16.2 percent year on year, while profits of major service providers climbed 15.5 percent.

The industrial output figures were released by the NBS along with a slew of other major economic indicators, including retail sales and fixed-asset investment.

China's gross domestic product expanded 6.7 percent year-on-year in the first three quarters, in line with market expectations and higher than the government's annual growth target of around 6.5 percent.

China's fixed-asset investment up 5.4%

China's fixed-asset investment (FAI) grew 5.4 percent in the first three quarters of the year, up from 5.3 percent for January-August, data showed Friday.

On a monthly basis, FAI edged up 0.1 percentage point from the January-August period, according to data from the NBS.

In breakdown, the culture, sport and entertainment sector saw the fastest FAI growth in the January-September period, up 19.3 percent yar on year. FAI in the sector of computer, communication and electronic manufacturing rose 18.3 percent.

Private investment, which accounts for more than 60 percent of total FAI, rose at a faster pace than the overall growth, up 8.7 percent year-on-year.

Industrial investment grew 5.4 percent from previous year, up 1 percentage point from January-August.

The growth of infrastructure investment continued to slow, adding only 3.3 percent year-on-year in the first nine months, down 1.3 percentage points from the January-August period.

Real estate investment increased 9.9 percent year-on-year in the first three quarters, slightly down from the 10.1-percent expansion recorded in the first eight months.

China's retail sales up 9.3%

China's retail sales of consumer goods grew 9.3 percent year on year in the first three quarters of this year, official data showed Friday.

The growth slightly slowed from the 9.4-percent rise seen in the first half, according to the NBS.

In the first three quarters, retail sales reached 27.4 trillion yuan (about US$3.95 trillion), NBS data showed.

In September alone, retail sales grew 9.2 percent year on year to 3.2 trillion yuan, up from 9 percent in August.

Meanwhile, retail sales in rural areas increased 10.4 percent year on year in the first three quarters, continuing to outpace growth in urban regions, where sales rose 9.1 percent, according to the NBS.

In breakdown, the catering sector reported a 9.8-percent year-on-year rise in revenue in the first nine months, while sales of other consumer products increased by 9.2 percent.

Online spending remained robust, with sales surging 27 percent to reach 6.3 trillion yuan in the first nine months, NBS data showed. 

China's property investment up 9.9%

China's real estate investment increased 9.9 percent year-on-year in the first three quarters this year, slightly down from the 10.1-percent expansion recorded in the January-August period, the NBS said Friday.

NBS data showed investment in the real estate sector amounted to 8.87 trillion yuan (about US$1.28 trillion), with 70.8 percent of the total pumped into residential projects.

Residential real estate investment increased 14 percent in the first nine months, down 0.1 percentage points from the January-August period.

In breakdown, developers built about 7.67 billion square meters of housing in the first three quarters, up 3.9 percent year on year.

Commercial housing sales measured by floor area rose 2.9 percent year-on-year in the first three quarters, down 1.1 percentage points compared with the first eight months.

READ MORE: China's industrial profits up 17.1% in Jan-July period

At the end of September, housing inventories stood at about 532 million square meters, down by 6.82 million square meters from a month earlier.

The government has continued its tough stance on property sector regulation this year, curbing home market-speculation and cleaning up the illegal financing channels of property developers.

The once-overheated sector has thus far remained largely stable amid efforts to help defuse financial risks. 

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