Thu, 01/21/2010 - 14:56
China's GDP grows by 8.7 pct in 2009
Shanghai. January 21. INTERFAX-CHINA - China's gross domestic product (GDP) grew by 8.7 percent year-on-year to RMB 33.53 trillion ($4.91 trillion) in 2009, aided by a 10.7 percent spike in the GDP growth rate in the fourth quarter, according to statistics released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) on Jan. 21.
The 8.7 percent growth rate beat Beijing's target of 8 percent even in the face of the global economic downturn.
China's economy recovered in 2009 thanks to the RMB 4 trillion ($585.65 billion) stimulus package that Beijing launched in late 2008. GDP grew at an annual rate of 6.2 percent in the first quarter of 2009, but the growth rate gradually grew to 7.9 percent in the second quarter and 9.1 percent in the third quarter.
China's industrial output in 2009 grew by 11 percent year-on-year while fixed asset investment surged 30.1 percent on an annual basis to RMB 22.48 trillion ($3.29 trillion), according to the NBS.
Retail sales expanded by 15.5 percent year-on-year to RMB 12.54 trillion ($1.84 trillion) in 2009.
Nevertheless, the consumer price index (CPI) dropped 0.7 percent year-on-year in 2009 while the producer price index (PPI) fell 5.4 percent year-on-year, according to NBS statistics.
-WV
