Beijing's GDP down 6.6 pct in Q1

2020-04-22

Beijing's regional gross domestic product (GDP) was tallied at 746.2 billion yuan (about 105.5 billion U.S. dollars) in the first quarter, down 6.6 percent year on year, local authorities said Monday.

In breakdown, the added value of the tertiary industry saw the slowest decline of 4.8 percent year on year during the three-month period to 654 billion yuan, compared to a 17.5-percent drop in the secondary industry and a 22.9-percent decline in the primary industry.

While the service sector suffered a greater impact as a result of the COVID-19 epidemic, other sectors including finance and IT showed strong resilience and maintained a moderate growth momentum, according to the municipal bureau of statistics.

New industries, new forms of business and new models emerged and grew rapidly amid epidemic as the "homebody economy," cloud working and online education brought brisk demand for Internet services, the bureau said.

Pang Jiangqian, deputy director and spokesperson of the bureau, said the city saw its major economic indicators pick up in March, with high-tech industries and the new economy showing vitality, which accumulated new momentum for further economic recovery.