Hu Kaihong:

Ladies and gentlemen, good morning! Welcome to the press conference today. China's economic activity is constantly under the spotlight, and today we are honored to have with us Sheng Laiyun, spokesperson of the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), to give an outline of the performance of the Chinese economy during the first quarter of 2015. He will also take questions from the attending press.

Sheng Laiyun:

Ladies and gentlemen, good morning! First I'll brief you on the major national economic index data in the first quarter and then answer your questions. The Chinese economy had a solid start in the first quarter. Since the beginning of 2015, in the face of the complicated international situation and downward pressure of domestic economic development, the CPC Central Committee and the State Council adhered to the general tone of ‘moving forward while maintaining stability,' played a leading role in the ‘New Normal,' focused on improving efficiency, gave prominence to structural adjustment, deepened reform and opening up, vitalized the market and improved the people's livelihood. As a result, the national economy had developed smoothly with restructuring advancing steadily and new impetus showing momentum.

According to preliminary estimates, China's gross domestic product (GDP) in the first quarter of this year was 14.07 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 7.0 percent. The added value of the primary industry was 777 billion yuan, up by 3.2 percent year-on-year; that of the secondary industry was 6.03 trillion yuan, up by 6.4 percent; and that of the tertiary industry was 7.26 trillion yuan, up by 7.9 percent. The gross domestic product of the first quarter went up by 1.3 percent against the previous quarter.

1. Agricultural production remained stable

According to the planting intention survey conducted among more than 110,000 rural households, the planting area for rice would go up by 0.2 percent; wheat grew by 0.7 percent; corn was up by 1.9 percent and cotton down by 11.2 percent. Currently, the growth of seedling was normal in the main producing areas. In the first quarter of this year, the total output of pork, beef, mutton and poultry reached 23.15 million tons, a year-on-year decrease of 1.4 percent. The output of pork was 15.57 million tons, down by 3.1 percent.

2. Industrial production growth dropped slightly

In the first quarter, the added value at comparable prices of the industrial enterprises above designated size was up by 6.4 percent year-on-year. An analysis of the different types of enterprises showed that the value added growth of state holding enterprises went up by 1.7 percent; collective enterprises up by 2.4 percent; share-holding enterprises up by 7.4 percent; and there was a 4.3 percent growth among enterprises funded by foreign investors or investors from Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan. The value added growth for the mining industry was up by 3.2 percent year-on-year; manufacturing up by 7.2 percent and the production and supply of electricity, heat, gas and water was up by 2.3 percent. Out of the 564 kinds of industrial products, 333 kinds registered year-on-year increases in output. In the first quarter, the sales output ratio of industrial enterprises above designated size was 97.2 percent. The export delivery value of the industrial enterprises above designated size reached 2.63 trillion yuan, up by 2.9 percent. In March, the total added value of the industrial enterprises above designated size was up by 5.6 percent year-on-year, or 0.25 percent month-on-month.

In the first two months of this year, the profits made by industrial enterprises above designated size stood at 745.2 billion yuan, down by 4.2 percent year on year. The cost for per-hundred-yuan turnover of primary activities of the industrial enterprises above designated size reached 85.55 yuan. The profit rate of industrial enterprises above designated size from their primary activities was 4.9 percent.

3. The growth of investment in fixed assets slowed down to some extent

In the first quarter of 2015, investment in fixed assets (excluding rural households) was 7.75 trillion yuan, a year-on-year nominal growth of 13.5 percent, or 14.5 percent adjusted for inflation factor. Of this total, the fixed assets investment of state holding enterprises reached 2.36 trillion yuan, an increase of 14.4 percent; private investment reached 5.03 trillion yuan, up by 13.6 percent, accounting for 65 percent of the total investment. The investment in the primary industry reached 155.3 billion yuan, up by 32.8 percent year-on-year; that of the secondary industry was 3.14 trillion yuan, up by 11.0 percent; and that of the tertiary industry was 4.46 trillion yuan, up by 14.7 percent. The amount in place for investment in the first quarter of 2015 was 10.27 trillion yuan, up by 6.8 percent. Specifically, government budgetary funds increased by 11.0 percent, domestic loans dropped by 3.7 percent, self-raising funds increased by 11.3 percent and foreign investment was down by 33.5 percent. The total planned investment in newly-started projects was 5.84 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 6.1 percent. In March, investment in fixed assets (excluding rural households) went up by 1.04 percent month-on-month.

In the first quarter of 2015, the total investment in real estate development was 1.67 trillion yuan, a year-on-year nominal growth of 8.5 percent, or 9.5 percent adjusted for inflation factor. Of this total, investment in residential buildings went up by 5.9 percent. The floor space of houses newly started in the first quarter was 237.24 million square meters, down by 18.4 percent. Specifically, the floor space of residential buildings started in the first quarter dropped by 20.9 percent. The floor space of commercial buildings sold reached 182.54 million square meters, down by 9.2 percent. Of this total, that of residential buildings went down by 9.8 percent. The sales of commercial buildings in the first quarter were 1.20 trillion yuan, down by 9.3 percent. Of this total, that of residential buildings was down by 9.1 percent. In the first quarter of this year, the land space purchased by real estate development enterprises was 40.51 million square meters, down by 32.4 percent. By the end of March, the floor space of commercial buildings for sale reached 649.98 million square meters, up by 24.6 percent. The actual funds for real estate development enterprises in the first quarter reached 2.79 trillion yuan, down by 2.9 percent.

4. Market sales continued to grow steadily

In the first quarter of 2015, the total retail sales of consumer goods reached 7.07 trillion yuan, an a year-on-year nominal growth of 10.6 percent, or 10.8 percent adjusted for inflation factor. Specifically, the retail sales of the units above designated size stood at 3.25 trillion yuan, up by 7.8 percent. In terms of different areas, retail sales in urban areas reached 6.07 trillion yuan, up by 10.4 percent, and sales in rural areas stood at 1.00 trillion yuan, up by 11.6 percent. Grouped by consumption patterns, the total income of the catering industry was 745.8 billion yuan, up by 11.3 percent year on year; and the retail sales of goods were 6.33 trillion yuan, up by 10.5 percent. In particular, the retail sales of units above designated size reached 3.05 trillion yuan, up by 7.8 percent. In March, the total retail sales of consumer goods grew by 10.2 percent year-on-year (a growth of 10.2 percent adjusted for inflation factor), or 0.71 percent month-on-month.

In the first quarter of 2015, the online retail sales of goods and services reached 760.7 billion yuan, a growth of 41.3 percent year-on-year. Specifically, the online retail sales of goods registered 631.0 billion yuan, up by 41.0 percent, accounting for 8.9 percent of the total retail sales of consumer goods. The online retail sales of services were 129.7 billion yuan, up by 43.0 percent.

5. Trade surplus increased significantly

The total value of imports and exports in the first quarter of 2015 was 5.54 trillion yuan, a year-on-year decrease of 6.0 percent. The total value of exports was 3.15 trillion yuan, a growth of 4.9 percent; and that of imports was 2.39 trillion yuan, down by 17.3 percent. The trade surplus was 755.3 billion yuan. In March, the total value of imports and exports was 1.76 trillion yuan, down by 13.5 percent year-on-year. The total value of exports was 886.8 billion yuan, down by 14.6 percent; and that of imports was 868.7 billion yuan, down by 12.3 percent.

6. Consumer prices remained low

In the first quarter of 2015, consumer price went up by 1.2 percent year-on-year. Specifically, prices went up by 1.2 percent in cities and 1.0 percent in rural areas. Grouped by commodity categories, prices for food grew by 1.9 percent; tobacco, liquor and articles dropped by 0.5 percent; clothing was up by 2.9 percent; household facilities, articles and maintenance services up by 1.2 percent; health care and personal articles grew by 1.7 percent; transportation and communication decreased by 1.8 percent; recreation, education, culture articles and services grew by 1.2 percent; and housing went up by 0.7 percent. In terms of food prices, grain grew by 2.8 percent, oil or fat were down by 5.1 percent, pork was down by 1.7 percent and fresh vegetables were up by 1.4 percent. In March, consumer prices went up by 1.4 percent year on year, or down by 0.5 percent month-on-month. In the first quarter, producer prices for industrial products dropped by 4.6 percent. In March, the price dropped by 4.6 percent year on year, or 0.1 percent month-on-month. In the first quarter, the purchasing price for industrial producers was down by 5.6 percent year on year. In March, the price was down by 5.7 percent year on year, or 0.3 percent month on month.

7. Incomes continued to increase

Based on the integrated household survey, in the first quarter of 2015, the national per capita disposable income was 6,087 yuan, a nominal growth of 9.4 percent, or a real increase of 8.1 percent after deducting price factors. In terms of permanent residence, the per capita disposable income of urban households was 8,572 yuan, a nominal growth of 8.3 percent, or a real growth of 7.0 percent. The per capita disposable income of rural residents was 3,279 yuan, up by 10.0 percent nominally, or 8.9 percent in real terms. The median of national per capita disposable income was 5,216 yuan, a nominal increase of 11.1 percent. By the end of February, the number of rural migrant workers was 163.31 million, decreased by 6.02 million, down by 3.6 percent. The average monthly income of migrant workers was 3,000 yuan, up by 11.9 percent year on year.

8. Structural adjustment made steady progress

The industrial structure was optimized. In the first quarter, the value added of the tertiary industry accounted for 51.6 percent of the GDP, which was 1.8 percentage points higher compared to the same period last year and 8.7 percentage points higher than that of the secondary industry. Industrial innovation and upgrading accelerated. In the first quarter, the value added growth for the high-tech industry was up by 11.4 percent year on year, the equipment manufacturing industry grew by 7.7 percent, which was respectively 5.0 percentage points and 1.3 percentage points higher than that of the industrial enterprises above designated size. The income gap between urban and rural households was further narrowed. In the first quarter, the real growth of the per capita disposable income of rural households was 1.9 percentage points higher than that of urban households. The per capita disposable income of urban households was 2.61 times that of rural households, a decrease of 0.05 compared with the same period of the previous year. New achievements were made in energy conservation and consumption reduction. In the first quarter, unit energy consumption against GDP decreased by 5.6 percent year on year.

9. The money supply continued to grow steadily

By the end of March, the balance of broad money (M2) was 127.53 trillion yuan, a year-on-year growth of 11.6 percent; the balance of narrow money (M1) was 33.72 trillion yuan, up by 2.9 percent; and the balance of cash in circulation (M0) was 6.2 trillion yuan, up by 6.2 percent. The amount of outstanding loans by the end of March was 85.91 trillion yuan, while the amount of outstanding deposits was 124.89 trillion yuan. In the first quarter, the newly increased loans reached 3.68 trillion yuan, an increase of 601.8 billion yuan; the newly increased deposits reached 4.15 trillion yuan, a decrease of 1.64 trillion yuan year on year. In the first quarter, the total social financing reached 4.61 trillion yuan, or a decrease of 894.9 billion yuan year on year.

As a whole, the national economy developed steadily in the first quarter of 2015. Despite the slump in economic growth, employment, consumer prices and market expectations remained stable. Positive factors were accumulating with labor restructuring advancing steadily, transformation and upgrading showed good momentum, and new economic driving forces are rapidly emerging. In the future, in accordance with the decisions and arrangements by the CPC Central Committee and the State Council, we must prioritize stabilizing economic growth, ensuring employment and improving efficiency. We must proceed with confidence and make our best efforts to promote economic development, deepen reform and opening up, and motivate innovation to a higher degree so as to ensure the sustained and sound development of the national economy.

Those are the major economic data of the first quarter. Now I'm ready to answer your questions.

Hu Kaihong:

Now the floor is open. Please identify which media outlet you are representing when you raise your questions.