The first half of the year saw steady progress in the recovery of the national economy towards good and high-quality development | year-on-year | National economy
According to data released by the National Bureau of Statistics on July 17th, preliminary calculations show that the gross domestic product in the first half of 2023 was 59303.4 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 5.5% at constant prices, an increase of 1.0 percentage point from the first quarter.
Looking at industries, the added value of the primary industry was 3041.6 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 3.7%; The added value of the secondary industry was 23068.2 billion yuan, an increase of 4.3%; The added value of the tertiary industry was 33193.7 billion yuan, an increase of 6.4%. 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. From a month on month perspective, the gross domestic product (GDP) grew by 0.8% in the second quarter.
Fu Linghui, spokesperson for the National Bureau of Statistics and Director of the Department of Comprehensive Statistics of the National Economy, stated that in the face of a complex and severe international environment and the arduous task of domestic reform, development, and stability, all regions and departments have conscientiously implemented the decisions and deployments of the Party Central Committee and the State Council, adhered to the overall tone of seeking progress while maintaining stability, fully, accurately, and comprehensively implemented the new development concept, accelerated the construction of a new development pattern, focused on promoting high-quality development, better coordinating domestic and international situations, better coordinating epidemic prevention and control with economic and social development, better coordinating development and security, and highlighted the work of stabilizing growth, employment, and prices. In the first half of the year, market demand gradually recovered, production and supply continued to increase, employment and prices remained stable, household income steadily increased, and the overall economic operation rebounded and improved.
The agricultural production situation is stable, and the livestock industry is growing steadily
In the first half of the year, the added value of agriculture increased by 3.3% year-on-year. Summer grain production has reaped another bountiful harvest. The total summer grain production in China was 146.13 million tons, a decrease of 1.274 million tons or 0.9% compared to the previous year, ranking second in history. In the first half of the year, the production of pigs, cattle, sheep, and poultry meat reached 46.82 million tons, a year-on-year increase of 3.6%. Among them, the production of pork, beef, lamb, and poultry meat increased by 3.2%, 4.5%, 5.1%, and 4.3% respectively; Milk production increased by 7.5%, and poultry egg production increased by 2.9%. At the end of the second quarter, there were 435.17 million pigs on hand, a year-on-year increase of 1.1%. In the first half of the year, 37.548 million pigs were slaughtered, an increase of 2.6%.
Industrial production is steadily recovering, and the equipment manufacturing industry is growing rapidly
In the first half of the year, the added value of industries above designated size in China increased by 3.8% year-on-year, an increase of 0.8 percentage points compared to the first quarter. Looking at the three major categories, the added value of the mining industry increased by 1.7% year-on-year, the manufacturing industry increased by 4.2%, and the production and supply of electricity, heat, gas, and water increased by 4.1%. The added value of the equipment manufacturing industry increased by 6.5%, 2.7 percentage points faster than all industries above designated size. From the perspective of economic types, the added value of state-owned holding enterprises increased by 4.4% year-on-year; Joint stock enterprises saw a growth of 4.4%, while foreign and Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan invested enterprises saw a growth of 0.8%; Private enterprises grew by 1.9%. By product, the production of solar cells, new energy vehicles, industrial control computers and systems increased by 54.5%, 35.0%, and 34.1%, respectively. In June, the added value of industrial enterprises above designated size increased by 4.4% year-on-year and 0.68% month on month. In June, the Purchasing Managers Index for the manufacturing industry was 49.0%, and the expected index for enterprise production and operation activities was 53.4%.
The service industry is growing rapidly, and there is a significant improvement in the contact aggregation service industry
In the first half of the year, the added value of the service industry increased by 6.4% year-on-year, which was 1.0 percentage point faster than the first quarter. Among them, the added value of accommodation and catering industry, information transmission, software and information technology services industry, leasing and business services industry, finance industry, wholesale and retail industry increased by 15.5%, 12.9%, 10.1%, 7.3%, and 6.6%, respectively. In June, the service industry production index increased by 6.8% year-on-year. Among them, the production index of accommodation and catering industry, information transmission, software and information technology services industry, leasing and business services industry increased by 20.0%, 15.4%, and 9.3%, respectively. From January to May, the operating revenue of service industry enterprises above designated size in China increased by 8.5% year-on-year. In June, the business activity index of the service industry was 52.8%, and the expected business activity index was 60.3%. Among them, the business activity index of industries such as air transportation, postal express delivery, telecommunications, broadcasting and satellite transmission services, monetary and financial services, insurance, etc. are all in the high prosperity range of 60.0% or above.
The market sales growth is good, and the sales of upgraded products are accelerating
In the first half of the year, the total retail sales of consumer goods reached 22758.8 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 8.2%, an increase of 2.4 percentage points compared to the first quarter. According to the location of the operating unit, the retail sales of urban consumer goods reached 19753.2 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 8.1%; The retail sales of rural consumer goods reached 3005.6 billion yuan, an increase of 8.4%. By consumption type, retail sales of goods reached 20325.9 billion yuan, an increase of 6.8%; The catering revenue was 2432.9 billion yuan, an increase of 21.4%. The sales of basic daily necessities have steadily increased, with retail sales of clothing, shoes, hats, needles, textiles, and grain, oil, and food products for units above designated size increasing by 12.8% and 4.8%, respectively. The sales of upgraded products have grown rapidly, with retail sales of gold, silver, jewelry, sports and entertainment products, and cosmetics for units above the quota increasing by 17.5%, 10.5%, and 8.6%, respectively. The national online retail sales reached 7162.1 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 13.1%. Among them, the online retail sales of physical goods reached 6062.3 billion yuan, an increase of 10.8%, accounting for 26.6% of the total retail sales of consumer goods in society. In June, the total retail sales of consumer goods increased by 3.1% year-on-year and 0.23% month on month.
Fixed assets investment continued to grow, and investment in high-tech industries grew rapidly
In the first half of the year, the national fixed assets investment was 24311.3 billion yuan, up 3.8% year on year. Looking at different sectors, infrastructure investment increased by 7.2%, manufacturing investment increased by 6.0%, and real estate development investment decreased by 7.9%. The sales area of commercial housing nationwide is 595.15 million square meters, a decrease of 5.3%; The sales revenue of commercial housing reached 630.92 billion yuan, an increase of 1.1%. Looking at industries, investment in the primary industry increased by 0.1%, investment in the secondary industry increased by 8.9%, and investment in the tertiary industry increased by 1.6%. Private investment decreased by 0.2%. Investment in high-tech industries increased by 12.5%, with investment in high-tech manufacturing and high-tech services increasing by 11.8% and 13.9% respectively. In the high-tech manufacturing industry, investment in medical equipment and instrument manufacturing, as well as electronic and communication equipment manufacturing, increased by 16.8% and 14.2% respectively; In the high-tech service industry, investment in professional technical services and technology achievement transformation services increased by 51.6% and 46.3%, respectively. In June, fixed assets investment grew 0.39% month on month.
The import and export of goods continue to grow, and the trade structure continues to optimize
In the first half of the year, the total import and export volume of goods was 20101.6 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 2.1%. Among them, exports reached 11458.8 billion yuan, an increase of 3.7%; Imports amounted to 8642.9 billion yuan, a decrease of 0.1%. Import and export offset each other, with a trade surplus of 2815.9 billion yuan. The import and export of general trade increased by 4.0%, accounting for 65.5% of the total import and export volume, an increase of 1.2 percentage points from the same period last year. The import and export of private enterprises increased by 8.9%, accounting for 52.7% of the total import and export volume, an increase of 3.3 percentage points from the same period last year. Import and export to countries along the "the Belt and Road" increased by 9.8%. In June, the total import and export volume was 3488.3 billion yuan, a year-on-year decrease of 6.0%. Among them, exports amounted to 1989.8 billion yuan, a decrease of 8.3%; Imports amounted to 1498.5 billion yuan, a decrease of 2.6%.
Residential consumption prices have increased year-on-year, while industrial producer prices have decreased year-on-year
In the first half of the year, the national consumer prices increased by 0.7% year-on-year. By category, food, tobacco, and alcohol prices have increased by 2.1%, clothing prices have increased by 0.8%, housing prices have decreased by 0.2%, daily necessities and services prices have increased by 0.5%, transportation and communication prices have decreased by 2.3%, education, culture, and entertainment prices have increased by 1.7%, healthcare prices have increased by 1.0%, and other goods and services prices have increased by 2.9%. In terms of food, tobacco, and alcohol prices, fresh fruit prices increased by 7.9%, pork prices increased by 3.2%, grain prices increased by 1.6%, and fresh vegetable prices decreased by 2.7%. After deducting food and energy prices, the core CPI increased by 0.7% year-on-year. In June, the national consumer prices remained unchanged year-on-year, with a month on month decrease of 0.2%.
In the first half of the year, the ex factory prices of industrial producers in China decreased by 3.1% year-on-year. Among them, June saw a year-on-year decrease of 5.4% and a month on month decrease of 0.8%. In the first half of the year, the purchasing prices of industrial producers decreased by 3.0% year-on-year. Among them, June saw a year-on-year decrease of 6.5% and a month on month decrease of 1.1%.
The overall employment situation is stable, and the urban survey unemployment rate has decreased
In the first half of the year, the average national urban survey unemployment rate was 5.3%, a decrease of 0.2 percentage points from the first quarter. In June, the national urban survey unemployment rate was 5.2%, unchanged from the previous month. The unemployment rate of local registered residence labor force survey is 5.1%; The unemployment rate of migrant registered residence labor force survey is 5.3%, of which the unemployment rate of migrant agricultural registered residence labor force survey is 4.9%. The surveyed unemployment rates for the 16-24 and 25-59 age groups were 21.3% and 4.1%, respectively. Among the labor force aged 25-59, the surveyed unemployment rates for those with junior high school education or below, high school education, college education, and bachelor's degree or above are 4.4%, 4.4%, 3.9%, and 3.2%, respectively. The surveyed unemployment rate in 31 major cities and towns is 5.5%, which is the same as last month. The average weekly working time for employees in enterprises nationwide is 48.7 hours. At the end of the second quarter, the total number of rural migrant workers was 187.05 million, a year-on-year increase of 3.2%.
The income of residents has steadily increased, with rural residents experiencing a faster growth rate than urban residents
In the first half of the year, the per capita disposable income of residents in China was 19672 yuan, a nominal increase of 6.5% year-on-year, which was 1.4 percentage points faster than the first quarter; Excluding price factors, the actual growth rate increased by 5.8%, accelerating by 2.0 percentage points. Divided by permanent residence, the per capita disposable income of urban residents is 26357 yuan, a nominal increase of 5.4% year-on-year and an actual increase of 4.7%; The per capita disposable income of rural residents was 10551 yuan, a year-on-year nominal increase of 7.8% and an actual increase of 7.2%. From the perspective of income sources, the per capita wage income, net operating income, net property income, and net transfer income of residents in China increased by 6.8%, 7.0%, 4.7%, and 6.1% in nominal terms, respectively. The median per capita disposable income of residents in China is 16393 yuan, a nominal increase of 5.4% year-on-year.
"Overall, in the first half of the year, with the comprehensive restoration of normal economic and social operations, macroeconomic policies have shown significant effectiveness and strength, and the national economy has rebounded and steadily advanced towards high-quality development." Fu Linghui pointed out, but it should also be noted that the world political and economic situation is complex, and the foundation for sustained recovery and development of the domestic economy is still unstable. In the next stage, we must adhere to the overall tone of seeking progress while maintaining stability, fully, accurately, and comprehensively implement the new development concept, focus on the primary task of high-quality development and the strategic task of building a new development pattern, comprehensively deepen reform and opening up, accelerate the construction of a modern industrial system, focus on smooth economic circulation, and make greater efforts in transforming modes, adjusting structures, and increasing momentum, striving to promote the effective improvement of quality and reasonable growth of quantity in the economy.
