China's GDP rises 5.5% in H1 2023: NBS

By industry, the value added of the primary industry rose by 3.7 per cent to 3,041.6 billion yuan. The secondary industry saw an increase of 4.3 per cent, reaching 23,068.2 billion yuan, and the tertiary industry witnessed the highest growth of 6.4 per cent, amounting to 33,193.7 billion yuan. Furthermore, China's GDP grew by 4.5 per cent and 6.3 per cent year on year in the first and second quarters respectively, with the second quarter showing a quarter-on-quarter growth of 0.8 per cent.

The first half of 2023 also saw an increase in industrial production, with enterprises above the designated size growing by 3.8 per cent year on year. Specific sectors like manufacturing and production and supply of electricity saw increases of 4.2 per cent and 4.1 per cent respectively, as per the NBS.

Retail sales showed strong growth as well, with total retail sales of consumer goods surging by 8.2 per cent year on year to reach 22,758.8 billion yuan. Urban areas contributed 19,753.2 billion yuan, an 8.1 per cent rise, while rural areas contributed 3,005.6 billion yuan, a rise of 8.4 per cent. Online retail sales saw a 13.1 per cent year on year increase, reaching 7,162.1 billion yuan.

The total value of imports and exports of goods grew by 2.1 per cent year on year, hitting 20,101.6 billion yuan. While exports saw a 3.7 per cent rise to 11,458.8 billion yuan, imports experienced a slight dip of 0.1 per cent to 8,642.9 billion yuan.

Meanwhile, the consumer price index (CPI) and the producer prices for industrial products experienced contrasting trends. The CPI rose by 0.7 per cent year on year, while the producer prices for industrial products fell by 3.1 per cent year on year.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DP)