The gross domestic product (GDP) of south China's boomtown of Shenzhen recorded an eight-year high of 286.051 billion yuan (about US$34.5 billion) in 2003, surging 17.3 percent over the previous year, according to Shenzhen Statistics Bureau.

The industrial added value in Shenzhen grew 22.4 percent to reach 168.537 billion yuan last year, and the industrial sector accounted for 60 percent of the city's overall economy in terms of GDP.

The added value of the service sector in Shenzhen reached 115.698 billion yuan in 2003, up 10.7 percent, the bureau said.

The added value of the agricultural sector stood at 1.816 billion yuan, dropping six percent, and the agricultural sector now takes up just 0.6 percent of the GDP of Shenzhen.

The disposable income for each resident averaged at 25,936 yuan in 2003, rising only four percent year on year and growing at a much lower rate than GDP.

Cars still remained the most popular commodities for Shenzhen residents, playing a major role in boosting the city's economy.

Shenzhen, a vigorous metropolis neighboring Hong Kong, is also one of China's five special economic zones where preferential policies are practiced.

China has launched the CEPA (Chinese Mainland/Hong Kong Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement) to strengthen the economic ties between Hong Kong and the mainland, which is expected to greatly boost Shenzhen's economic development as well.

(Xinhua News Agency January 25, 2004)