SHENZHEN’S economy grew 6.0% year on year in the first three quarters, outperforming China’s national growth rate of 4.6%, driven largely by high-tech and advanced manufacturing, finance, and information technology.

The city’s gross domestic product (GDP) reached 3.025 trillion yuan (US$450 billion) in the nine months ended Sept. 30, according to data released by the local statistics bureau Friday.

From January to September, the added value of industrial enterprises above designated size — those with annual revenue of at least 20 million yuan — in the city grew 9.5% year on year, 0.8 percentage points faster than in the first half of the year.

By sector, the added value of high-tech manufacturing grew 11.6%, and that of advanced manufacturing grew 11.9%.

The manufacture of computers, communication equipment, and other electronic equipment grew 11.6%.

During the period, the added value of the service industry in the city reached 1.921 trillion yuan, up 5.4% year on year. Among these, leasing and business services, the financial sector, software and IT services grew 8.2%, 7.6%, and 7.1%, respectively.

From January to August, operating revenue of service enterprises above designated size grew 7.2%, with logistics services, software and IT services, and leasing and business services contributing growth rates of 11.0%, 7.4%, and 7.4%, respectively.

In the first three quarters, the city’s airport passenger throughput grew 3.8%, and port container throughput grew 7.9%.

The city’s total retail sales of consumer goods topped 773 billion yuan, up 2.3% year on year, 1.1 percentage points faster than in the first half of the year. In September, total retail sales of consumer goods surpassed 90 billion yuan, up 7.6% year on year, 2.5 percentage points faster than in August.

In the first three quarters, the city’s fixed asset investment fell 5.2% year on year, with the decline narrowing by 9.4 percentage points compared with the first half of the year. Excluding real estate development, fixed asset investment grew 3.1%. Infrastructure investment grew 16.9%, real estate development investment fell 23.2%, and industrial investment grew 4.3%.

In particular, investment in industrial technological upgrading grew 20.2%, and investment in high-tech manufacturing grew 18.0% year on year.

The city’s total imports and exports reached 4,652.817 billion yuan, up 38.8% year on year. Exports reached 2,408.503 billion yuan, up 18.5%, and imports were 2,244.314 billion yuan, up 70.1%. Exports of high-tech products grew 29.3%.

In the first nine months, the city’s consumer price index (CPI) rose 0.9% compared with the same period last year.

(SD News)