China's gross domestic product
(GDP) expanded at a record pace of 18.3 percent year on year during the
first quarter of this year as it rebounded from a historic contraction a
year earlier, data from the National Bureau of Statistics showed Friday.
China recorded a year-on-year
contraction of 6.8 percent in the first quarter of 2020, when the
country had to pause its economic activities to contain the spread of
COVID-19, setting the stage for a dramatic rebound this year. A soar in
March exports of over 30 percent year on year, benefiting from a
recovering global economy, was the most recent example of this base
effect.
The official data fell between
the estimations range, beating the lower forecast of 17.9 percent from a
Nikkei survey and 18 percent from a Macquarie poll but weaker than the
higher end of 19 percent from a Reuters poll.
China's recovery has been led by
robust exports, benefiting from the global economic recovery along with
greater vaccination efforts and a steady pickup in domestic
consumption.
Retail sales increased 34.2
percent from a year earlier in March, stronger than the 33.8 percent
jump seen in the first two months of the year and outperforming the
growing pace of industrial output, which registered at 14.1 percent in
March.
On a quarterly basis, China's
economic growth during the first quarter slowed to 0.6 percent from a
revised 3.2 percent in the previous quarter, the data showed.
Aided by strict epidemic control
measures and emergency relief for businesses, "first into the pandemic,
first out" momentum has enabled China to continue a steady recovery. The
country's economy grew 6.5 percent in the fourth quarter and 2.3 percent
for the entire year – making it the only major economy to expand in
2020.
Source: CGTN |