On July 20, the Hunan Provincial Bureau of Statistics released the economic performance of Hunan Province in the first half of the year. According to the unified regional calculation of gross domestic product (GDP), the province's GDP reached 2,703.36 billion CNY during the period, a year-on-year increase of 2.7%.

Industrial development has remained stable. The added value of agriculture, forestry, animal husbandry, and fishery across the province increased by 4.3% year on year, with the total summer grain output reaching 480,000 tonnes, up 2.8%. The number of hogs slaughtered rose 0.1% to 31.483 million; the vegetable output increased by 3.5%, 0.1 percentage points faster than that in the first quarter. The added value of industrial enterprises above designated size in the province increased by 2.6%, 0.2 percentage points faster than that in the first quarter, with the equipment manufacturing industry growing by 2.8%, contributing 2.5 percentage points to the growth of all industrial enterprises above designated size. From January to May, the operating revenue of service enterprises above designated size in the province increased by 2.6%, with the operating revenue of sports, culture and arts, and entertainment enterprises increasing by 16.4%, 7.9%, and 6%, respectively.

Demand remained under pressure. Consumption of some goods under the "trade-in" policy grew rapidly, with the retail sales of communications equipment by enterprises above designated size increasing by 11.1% year on year, and the retail sales of new energy vehicles increasing by 11%. The investment structure has been optimized, with state-owned investment, infrastructure investment, and purchases of equipment, tools and instruments increasing by 2.2%, 0.5%, and 3.6%, respectively. The province's total import and export volume reached 295.81 billion CNY, up 12.7%, with exports rising 5.2% to 168.67 billion CNY, and imports surging 24.3% to 127.14 billion CNY.

New growth drivers have been growing at an accelerated pace. The added value of high-tech manufacturing enterprises above designated size increased by 4% year on year, with electronic and communication equipment manufacturing industry growing by 7.9%. Retail sales of goods achieved through public networks by wholesale and retail enterprises above designated size increased by 2.8%.

Both quality and efficiency of economic development have continued to improve. The province's local general public budget revenue reached 191.11 billion CNY, a year-on-year increase of 0.6%. From January to May, the operating revenue profit margin of industrial enterprises above designated size was 5.38%, 0.04 percentage points higher than the same period last year; the total profit of service enterprises above designated size increased by 18%, 11.5 percentage points higher than the same period last year.

People's livelihoods have been effectively safeguarded. The province's expenditure on people's livelihoods accounted for 74.6% of general public budget expenditure. The per capita disposable income in the province increased by 4.9%, 0.1 percentage points faster than that in the first quarter. A total of over 467,000 urban jobs were created, achieving 66.8% of the annual target.

This article is from Hunan Provincial Government. www.enghunan.gov.cn.

Translator: Xiao Juan

Chinese source: hunan.gov.cn