The economy of Zibo city – located in East China's Shandong province – experienced steady growth from January to May, the municipal statistics bureau reported on June 24.
Industrial production increased steadily during the period, while the added value of industrial enterprises above a designated size – those with annual main business revenue of 20 million yuan ($2.97 million) or more – rose 8.6 percent year-on-year, ranking it third in Shandong province.
The investment structure remained stable, with fixed-asset investment growing 15.3 percent year-on-year in the first five months of the year, 9.1 percentage points higher than the country's gain. The primary industry grew by 18.2 percent, the secondary industry increased by 11.9 percent and the tertiary industry rose by 16.9 percent, respectively.
In addition, the added value of Zibo's four new emerging industries – new materials, intelligent manufacturing, new medicines and the electronics information sector – saw 12.7 percent combined growth. The stars were the electronics information manufacturing and the intelligent equipment industries, whose value added surged by 55.2 percent and 23.6 percent year-on-year.
Retailing experienced a gradual recovery during the period. From January to May, the city's total retail sales of consumer goods above the quota – those with annual sales of more than 5 million yuan – reached 16.38 billion yuan, up 2.9 percent year on year. This was 0.6 percentage points higher than that of the first four months of the year.
