China's GDP expands 6.9 pct in first 3 quarters

China's gross domestic product expanded 6.9 percent year on year in the first three quarters of 2017 to 59.3288 trillion yuan (about 8.9614 trillion U.S. dollars), the National Bureau of Statistics said on Thursday.[Special Coverage]

The growth rate held steady from a 6.9-percent increase in the first half of this year and is well above the government's target for the year of 6.5 percent, reflecting a continued firming trend in the nation's economy.

In the third quarter, China's GDP was up 6.8 percent year on year, compared with 6.9 percent in the second quarter, according to NBS data.

"The Chinese economy has maintained steady growth with a positive outlook in the first three quarters," NBS spokesperson Xing Zhihong told a press conference.

Improvements have been made in both economic structure and growth quality, and new growth engines are gaining steam, he said.

The service sector expanded 7.8 percent year on year in the first three quarters, outpacing a 3.7-percent increase in primary industry and 6.3 percent in secondary industry, according to the NBS.

Read more:

China's GDP grows 6.8 pct in Q3

China's GDP rose 6.8 percent year on year in the third quarter of 2017, compared with 6.9 percent in the second quarter, the National Bureau of Statistics data showed Thursday.

China's fixed-asset investment up 7.5 pct in first 9 months

China's fixed-asset investment rose 7.5 percent in the first nine months of the year, slightly down from 7.8 percent for January-August, data showed Thursday.

China industrial output expands 6.7 pct in Jan-Sept period

China's value-added industrial output expanded 6.7 percent year on year in the first nine months of this year, faster than the 6-percent increase a year ago, official data showed Thursday.

China's retail sales up 10.4 pct in Jan-Sept

China's retail sales of consumer goods grew 10.4 percent year on year in the first nine months of 2017, the National Bureau of Statistics said Thursday.