China's economy sees sustainable recovery, makes steady progress in first quarter: authorities

The Chinese economy saw sustainable recovery and made steady progress in the first quarter of this year, Sheng Laiyun, deputy director of the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), said on Tuesday.

Speaking at a press conference in Beijing, Sheng used several key phrases to evaluate the economic performance in the first three months.

"The first key phrase is sustainable recovery. In the first quarter of this year, the national economy generally continued the momentum of recovery and growth seen since last year, with key indicators of production and demand witnessing recovery," he said.

In breakdown, the value added of the primary, secondary and tertiary industries went up by 3.3 percent, six percent, and five percent year on year respectively in the first three months.

Investment in fixed assets (excluding rural households) reached 10,004.2 billion yuan (about 1,381.93 billion U.S. dollars) during the January-March period, up 4.5 percent year on year, 1.5 percentage points higher than the growth rate of the entire previous year.

China's retail sales of consumer goods, a major indicator of the country's consumption strength, climbed 4.7 percent year on year in the first quarter. Retail sales of services went up 10 percent year on year in the three-month period.

China's total imports and exports of goods expanded five percent year on year in the yuan terms in the three-month period, setting new records in both scale and growth rate.

"The second key phrase is a steady start. In terms of the four major macroeconomic indicators of economic growth, employment, consumer prices and international balance of payments, the Chinese economy was generally stable, and got off to a solid start in the first quarter," Sheng said.

China's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) grew 5.3 percent year on year in the first quarter, up 1.6 percent over the fourth quarter of last year. The surveyed urban unemployment rate on average in the country stood at 5.2 percent, a decrease of 0.3 percentage point compared to the same period of last year,according to the official.

China's Consumer Price Index (CPI), a main gauge of inflation, came in flat compared to last year's same period. The core CPI, deducting food and energy prices, went up 0.7 percent year on year last month, maintaining a mild increase, he said.

A basic equilibrium was maintained in the balance of payments,according to the official.

"The third key phrase is making progress while maintaining stability. This mainly means that while achieving reasonable growth in quantity, the national economy also realized effective improvement in quality, and high-quality development continued to make new progress. First, we made progress in innovation. In the first quarter, the added value of major high-tech manufacturing enterprises registered a growth of 7.5 percent, which was 2.6 percentage points higher than the fourth quarter of 2023. Coordinated development mainly means that the industrial structure and demand structure continued to improve. In the first quarter, domestic demand contributed 85.5 percent to economic growth," Sheng said.

"New progress was made in green development. In the first quarter, energy consumption per unit of the GDP fell 0.1 percent year on year. We also made advancement in open development, with in-depth promotion of higher-standard opening up," he added.

China's economy sees sustainable recovery, makes steady progress in first quarter: authorities

The year 2024 celebrates the 60th anniversary of China-France diplomatic ties, and it also heralds the China-France Year of Cultural Tourism, a celebration aimed at bolstering cultural and people-to-people exchanges through a series of enriching events.

During a special episode focused on this milestone, cultural experts and influencers from both nations shared insights into the depth of Sino-French cultural interactions.

The discussion, livestreamed from Shanghai on April 22, began with a historical overview, notably when then-Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai introduced President Georges Pompidou to the Yungang Grottoes, a renowned Buddhist cave site in north China's Shanxi. These caves feature intricate carvings that reflect religious and cultural syntheses from the 5th and 6th centuries.

David Gosset, founder of the China-Europe-America Global Initiative, commented on the geopolitical context of the initial outreach.

"People have to remember that we were in the middle of the Cold War, therefore, the world was divided. For a Western country like France to reach out to China, and of course vice versa, it's a beautiful moment, historical diplomatic breakthroughs, means that despite all the geopolitical difficulties, a spirit of cooperation and friendship can prevail," said Gosset.

Xie Dingwei, executive director of the Bund One Art Museum, emphasized the importance of preserving cultural heritage.

"We need to preserve these cultural heritages. We not [just] preserve the sculptures or the buildings itself, but also, it gives us a chance to see hundreds of years ago, how our craftsmanship, our architecture, our human beings, we have reached [such] high levels, which brings us to the present time these treasures, these values. This is something we really cannot afford to lose. Culture is a common language; it doesn't matter you're Eastern art or Western art, somehow they can be connected. So this is something I think it creates a communication channel between the nations," said Xie.

The cultural connection was recently demonstrated during a meeting last April between French President Emmanuel Macron and Chinese President Xi Jinping, where they enjoyed the performance of "Flowing Water" played on the Guqin by a Chinese artist, symbolizing the flowing friendship between the two nations.

"This communication on art subjects between the nations and different peoples are really, really important. It goes beyond politics, beyond the differences between the nations. But you all go to getting closer to understanding each other," said Xie.

Gosset also supported the notion of fostering unity through cultural platforms, aligning with President Xi Jinping's idea of building a community with a shared future.

"I am completely aligned with this idea. We are on the same boat. Our world is frightened by too many divisions. And I think, what is important is to support the forces that can unite us, so it can be music, and certainly museums, and you need leaders with a vision that does not separate us," said Gosset.

Six decades of China-France diplomatic relations highlighted by cultural exchange