In the first half of the year, the Chinese economy maintained steady progress and maintained a good momentum of high-quality development
The data released by the National Bureau of Statistics today shows that in the first half of the year, market demand gradually recovered, production supply continued to increase, employment prices remained generally stable, household income grew steadily, and the overall economic operation rebounded.
Preliminary calculations show that the gross domestic product (GDP) in the first half of the year was 59303.4 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 5.5%, an increase of 1.0 percentage point compared to the first quarter. From a quarterly perspective, the gross domestic product (GDP) increased by 4.5% year-on-year in the first quarter and 6.3% in the second quarter, continuing its recovery trend. From a global perspective, China's economic growth rate remains the fastest among major economies.
Structural improvement and kinetic energy optimization. From the demand side, in the first half of the year, China's economic growth shifted from being mainly driven by investment and exports last year to being mainly driven by consumption and investment, with consumption contributing significantly to economic growth. In the first half of this year, the contribution rate of final consumer spending to economic growth exceeded 70%. From the production side, summer grain production has achieved another bumper harvest, with the yield ranking second in history. Economic growth has shifted from being mainly driven by industry last year to being jointly driven by the service industry and industry, with service industry growth contributing over 60% to economic growth.
Innovation driven, green development. In the first half of the year, investment in high-tech industries increased by 12.5% year-on-year, while the added value of aerospace and equipment manufacturing, lithium-ion battery manufacturing, and other industries increased by more than 20% year-on-year. The production of new energy products such as new energy vehicles and charging piles increased by more than 30%, and energy utilization efficiency continued to improve. The energy consumption per unit GDP decreased by 0.4% year-on-year, and the effect of green transformation was obvious, significantly enhancing the synergy with economic growth.
Expansion of high-level opening up and optimization of trade structure. In the first half of the year, China's total import and export of goods increased by 2.1% year-on-year, with the proportion of general trade imports and exports with higher added value accounting for 65.5% of the total import and export. In the first half of the year, China's import and export to countries along the "the Belt and Road" increased by 9.8%, and the diversified development of trade was positive.
Employment is steadily expanding, and people's livelihoods are continuously improving. Since the beginning of this year, the overall urban survey unemployment rate in China has decreased, dropping to 5.2% in June, approaching the level of the same period before the epidemic. In the first half of the year, the per capita disposable income of Chinese residents increased by 5.8% in real terms, which was higher than the GDP growth rate of the same period and significantly accelerated compared to the entire year of last year.
From the perspective of the whole year, although facing pressure and challenges, with the improvement of employment, increase in household income, gradual enhancement of domestic demand, optimization and adjustment of supply structure, and growth and growth of new driving forces, the economy will steadily recover, and the quality of development will continue to improve. China has confidence, conditions, and ability to achieve the expected goals and tasks of economic and social development for the whole year.
