China's economy grew by 6.9% in 2017

China's economy grew by 6.9 per cent in 2017 with a better-than-expected growth rate and improved structure, official data showed on Thursday.

China's economy expanded 6.9 per cent year-on-year in 2017, higher than the 6.7 per cent growth registered in 2016, data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showed.

The reading marked the first acceleration in the annual growth pace in seven years and was well above the official target of around 6.5 per cent, Xinhua news agency reported.

"Major macroeconomic indicators all beat market expectations, pointing to economic stabilization," said Ning Jizhe, head of the NBS.

Growth in the fourth quarter came in at 6.8 per cent, unchanged from the rate seen in the third quarter.

Gross domestic product (GDP) totalled 82.71 trillion yuan (about $12.84 trillion) in 2017, with the service sector accounting for more than half of the total.

Consumption was the major growth driver, contributing 58.8 per cent to GDP growth last year.

The strong growth was also helped by robust trade, which reversed a downward trend seen in the previous two years and contributed about 9 per cent to GDP expansion in 2017.

A breakdown of the data showed improved economic structure with new growth drivers emerging and outdated capacity fading.

Retail sales in China grew by 10.2 per cent in 2017 while industrial production increased by 6.6 per cent, according to the NBS.

China's fixed-asset investment rose 7.2 per cent and real estate investment grew 7 per cent during 2017.

--IANS

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