Beijing, Jan 18 (Agency) China’s gross domestic product (GDP) grew 2.3 per cent year-on-year, backed by a relatively rapid recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic that also fuelled exports, official data showed on Monday. The GDP exceeded the 100-trillion-yuan (15.42 trillion US dollars) threshold for the first time, and the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said that the country is expected to be the only major economy to post growth in the pandemic-ravaged year.
The advance also came as the world’s second-largest economy won a decisive victory in poverty eradication last year while making historic achievements in the building of a moderately prosperous society in all respects. “These achievements show that China’s economic, scientific and comprehensive strengths have leapt by another big step,” Xinhua news agency quoted Ning Jizhe, head of the NBS, as saying. Growing from 10 trillion yuan 20 years ago, China’s economy is now likely to account for around 17 per cent of the global economy, Ning told a press conference, attributing the growth to progress in fields including grain production, industrial production, high-speed railway construction and 5G technologies. Noting that China remains the largest developing country in the world, Ning said the country’s GDP per capita is still lower than the global average and has a gap with that of major developed countries.
Looking forward, China is expecting its per capita GDP to reach the level of moderately developed countries by 2035, according to the Communist Party of China leadership’s proposals for formulating the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-2025) and long-range goals. The World Bank Group said earlier this month that it expects China’s economy to expand by 7.9 per cent this year, while the global economy is on track to grow by 4 per cent.