China's economy starts 2023 with faster growth, stronger market confidence

China's economy grew at a faster pace in the first quarter of 2023, with major indicators showing an upward trend and improvement in market expectations.

China's gross domestic product grew 4.5 percent year on year to 28.5 trillion yuan (US$4.14 trillion) in the first quarter, data from the National Bureau of Statistics showed Tuesday.

China's GDP grew 3 percent year on year in 2022, and 2.9 percent year on year in the fourth quarter of last year.

"China's national economy made a good start this year, and market expectations saw significant improvement," said NBS spokesperson Fu Linghui at a press conference.

"In the first quarter, China secured a smooth transition in COVID-19 prevention and control to the new phase in a relatively short time," Fu said. "The production and demand registered a stable recovery, employment and prices were kept generally stable, and residents' income continued to rise."

Growth in the second quarter is likely to be significantly faster than that of the first quarter, Fu added.

A breakdown of Tuesday's data showed improvements in major indicators, with retail sales of consumer goods up 5.8 percent year on year in the first quarter, reversing a decline of 2.7 percent in the final quarter of last year.

"These improvements show domestic demand has gradually expanded and consumer expectations have improved," Fu said.

The value-added industrial output increased by 3 percent year on year in the first three months, up 0.3 percentage points from the level in the fourth quarter of 2022.

The service sector rose 5.4 percent year on year in the first quarter, with rapid expansion in a wide range of contact-based industries from hotel to catering.

Fixed-asset investment went up 5.1 percent year on year in the first quarter, and the surveyed urban unemployment rate stood at 5.5 percent in the first three months, according to the NBS.