Revised '09 GDP shows China gaining on Japan
By Zhang Fengming |
July 3, 2010, Saturday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
CHINA revised its 2009 gross domestic product upward to US$4.99 trillion at last year's average exchange rate, almost catching up to Japan, the world's second-largest economy with a GDP of US$5.08 trillion.
China's output last year totalled 34.05 trillion yuan, or US$5.02 trillion based on the current exchange rate, up from an initial estimate of 33.54 trillion yuan, the National Bureau of Statistics said on its website yesterday.
Under the revision, China's 2009 economy grew 9.1 percent, rather than 8.7 percent in the previous calculation.
Given an estimate of about 9.5 percent growth rate for China this year, accompanied by Japan's sluggish pace, China is poised to overtake Japan as the second-largest economy after the United States.
But economists said what matters more is the per capita measure or the economic structure rather than a simple comparison of economic scale.
"What counts most is the per capita figure, and in the case of China, the total figure has to be divided by its huge population base," Lu Zhengwei, an Industrial Bank senior economist, said yesterday.
"The ultimate aim of economic growth is to let everyone enjoy the fruits of growth with a better living, rather than boasting figures," he said.
China's economy is expected to grow 10.7 percent annually in the second quarter, slowing from the surge of 11.9 percent in the first three months of this year, according to the State Information Center, a unit under the National Development and Reform Commission, China's top economic planner.
China, the fastest growing major economy, is trying to balance the growth of its affluent coastal area and the developing rural areas.
The central government has kicked off several initiatives to generate growth, especially in consumption demand. These include offering subsidies on purchases of autos and home appliances in the rural areas.
Meanwhile, China is shifting its growth engine from a reliance on exports to propulsion by domestic consumption.
The services sector is picking up growth and penetration in China. The revision showed that the services sector grew 9.3 percent in 2009, up 0.4 percentage points from the previous estimate.
The industrial sector's growth was revised to 9.9 percent from 9.5 percent. The agricultural sector's growth stood unchanged at 4.2 percent.
The industrial sector is still the biggest contributor of China's economy, with a contribution of 46.3 percent, followed by the services industry with 43.4 percent.
The agricultural sector accounted for 10.3 percent of China's output in 2009.
China's output last year totalled 34.05 trillion yuan, or US$5.02 trillion based on the current exchange rate, up from an initial estimate of 33.54 trillion yuan, the National Bureau of Statistics said on its website yesterday.
Under the revision, China's 2009 economy grew 9.1 percent, rather than 8.7 percent in the previous calculation.
Given an estimate of about 9.5 percent growth rate for China this year, accompanied by Japan's sluggish pace, China is poised to overtake Japan as the second-largest economy after the United States.
But economists said what matters more is the per capita measure or the economic structure rather than a simple comparison of economic scale.
"What counts most is the per capita figure, and in the case of China, the total figure has to be divided by its huge population base," Lu Zhengwei, an Industrial Bank senior economist, said yesterday.
"The ultimate aim of economic growth is to let everyone enjoy the fruits of growth with a better living, rather than boasting figures," he said.
China's economy is expected to grow 10.7 percent annually in the second quarter, slowing from the surge of 11.9 percent in the first three months of this year, according to the State Information Center, a unit under the National Development and Reform Commission, China's top economic planner.
China, the fastest growing major economy, is trying to balance the growth of its affluent coastal area and the developing rural areas.
The central government has kicked off several initiatives to generate growth, especially in consumption demand. These include offering subsidies on purchases of autos and home appliances in the rural areas.
Meanwhile, China is shifting its growth engine from a reliance on exports to propulsion by domestic consumption.
The services sector is picking up growth and penetration in China. The revision showed that the services sector grew 9.3 percent in 2009, up 0.4 percentage points from the previous estimate.
The industrial sector's growth was revised to 9.9 percent from 9.5 percent. The agricultural sector's growth stood unchanged at 4.2 percent.
The industrial sector is still the biggest contributor of China's economy, with a contribution of 46.3 percent, followed by the services industry with 43.4 percent.
The agricultural sector accounted for 10.3 percent of China's output in 2009.
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