[Photo/WeChat account: tongji-shanghai]

Shanghai's economy has had a solid start in 2024, with its gross regional product (GDP) reaching approximately 1.11 trillion yuan ($151.82 billion) in the first quarter of this year, marking a 5 percent year-on-year increase, as announced by local statistics authorities on April 19.

This growth was underpinned by robust performances across key sectors. The primary industry saw a 10.9 percent year-on-year increase, the secondary industry experienced a 2.2 percent increase, and the tertiary industry witnessed a 5.8 percent rise.

The city's industrial sector exhibited a 1.9 percent year-on-year increase in added value, with notable growth in high-tech product-related industries.

The service industry also experienced rapid growth during the three-month period, registering a 5.8 percent year-on-year increase in added value, reflecting the city's diverse economic expansion.

During the same period, Shanghai's fixed-asset investment surged by 9.2 percent. The city saw a marginal 0.1 percent year-on-year increase in total retail sales of consumer goods, reaching approximately 461.44 billion yuan. Additionally, its financial market turnover amounted to 866.13 trillion yuan, marking a 15.6 percent yearly uptick.

Looking ahead, Shanghai's GDP is expected to grow by about 5 percent this year, building upon the momentum from last year when it reached 4.72 trillion yuan, announced Gong Zheng, mayor of Shanghai, on Jan 23.

Key highlights:

• The manufacturing industries of cultural, educational, art, sports, and recreational products achieved a 16.5 percent increase in output value. Additionally, laptops, lithium-ion batteries, and microcomputer equipment experienced respective output quantity growth of 45.7 percent, 19.8 percent, and 13.1 percent.

• The two key industries of integrated circuits and new energy vehicle manufacturing, exhibited growth rates of 14 percent and 5 percent in output value, respectively.

• The service industry recorded a 5.8 percent year-on-year increase in added value, propelled by growth in segments including transportation, warehousing, postal services, information transmission, software, information technology services, leasing, commercial services, and finance.

• Fixed-asset investment in the city expanded by 9.2 percent year-on-year, with urban infrastructure, real estate development, and industrial investment all displaying positive growth.

• The financial market turnover surged by 15.6 percent year-on-year, with significant expansions in transaction volumes of securities, interbank markets, gold exchange, and financial futures exchange.

• The per capita disposable income of residents increased by 4.9 percent year-on-year, with urban and rural residents experiencing respective increases of 4.7 percent and 7.3 percent.

Source: "tongji-shanghai" WeChat account