China's per capita GDP makes a breakthrough

China's 2019 gross domestic product reached 99.1 trillion yuan (US$14.41 trillion), and the per capita GDP made a breakthrough, which for the first time reached US$10,000, the National Bureau of Statistics said on Friday.

China’s GDP expanded by 6.1 percent last year, within the target of 6-6.5 percent, “which is still the champion of economic growth globally,” said Ning Jizhe, head of the national statistics bureau.

"The latest data indicated a better-than-expected economic outlook. China's economy has been generally stable and is one of the fastest-growing economies in the world in 2019, despite an external environment that has become less favorable due to slowing global growth and rising trade tensions in 2019," Chinese Vice Premier Liu He said during a briefing on Wednesday.

Ning said, “The breakthrough made in the per capita GDP shows the quality of China’s economic development has improved and people’s life has been improving."

GDP growth in the fourth quarter was 6 percent, the same as the third quarter but slower than the 6.4 percent growth and 6.2 percent growth in the first two quarters respectively.

The services sector led the growth with an increase of 6.9 percent, outpacing the industrial sector’s 5.7 percent and the agricultural industries’ 3.1 percent.

The tertiary industry accounted for 53.9 percent of last year’s GDP, up 0.6 percentage points year on year, indicating the economic structure continued improving.

Consumption's underpinning role in boosting economic growth was further reinforced, as consumer spending contributed 57.8 percent of GDP growth in 2019, which means consumption is still the strongest momentum for China’s economic growth.

Consumer prices grew by 2.9 percent in 2019, within the target of 3 percent. Food prices led the growth, increasing by 9.2 percent, compared with 1.4 percent of non-food prices. The core CPI, excluding food and energy, grew by 1.6 percent, a little slower than last year.

Industrial production, an important economic indicator for manufacturing, expanded 5.7 percent year on year in 2019, led by high-tech manufacturers and strategic emerging industry, which grew by 8.8 percent and 8.4 percent respectively.

Fixed-asset investment increased 5.4 percent year on year in 2019, with more investment in high-tech industry, which grew by 17.3 percent, 11.9 percentage points faster than the overall investment.

Retail sales of consumer goods rose 8 percent year on year last year, led by consumption upgrade goods.