The director of China's National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) has defended the revision of its gross domestic product (GDP) figures for 2007, which revealed officially for the first time that China had the third largest GDP in the world.

China revised the growth rate of its GDP for 2007 to 13.0 percent from 11.9 percent after the final verification by the NBS on January 14, which made China the world's third largest economy in terms of GDP.

Regular revision on GDP figure, based on gradual improvement of data collection, is a common scene among other countries, said Ma Jiantang, director of the NBS.

For instance, the United States ordered its annual GDP figure to be revised five times, he told a press conference here Thursday.

The GDP calculation is complicated with collecting all the annual reports and financial data which could only be gradually obtained, said Ma.

"Based on more accurate and comprehensive data, the final verification of the 2007 GDP is precise and science-based." he said.

The NBS revealed the country's latest GDP figure at the same press conference, posting a nine percent year-on-year growth rate, the first time below a double-digit level since 2003.

The year-on-year growth rate for the fourth quarter dipped to 6.8 percent from 9.0 percent in the third quarter and 9.9 percent for the first three quarters, according to the latest statistics.

(Xinhua News Agency January 23, 2009)