The economy of southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region grew 12.1 percent in 2013, according to new official data released on Thursday.

The growth rate was 4.4 percentage points higher than the country's average, according to the regional statistics bureau.

The gross domestic product (GDP) of Tibet reached 80.767 billion yuan (13.19 billion U.S.dollars) in 2013, almost double that of 2009, according to the bureau.

"Tibet has maintained double-digit growth for 21 consecutive years," said Liu Baicheng, head of the regional statistics bureau.

The per capita net income of farmers and herdsmen in the region hit 6,578 yuan in 2013, up 15 percent year on year. The per capita disposable income of urban residents increased 11.1 percent year on year to reach 20,023 yuan. Endi