Fall in China's GDP in the first quarter of 2020
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China's GDP has fallen by 6.8 per cent year-on-year in the first quarter of 2020 amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said on Friday.
"According to the preliminary estimates, the gross domestic product (GDP) of China was 20,650.4 billion yuan [about $3 trillion] in the first quarter of 2020, a year-on-year decrease of 6.8 percent at comparable prices," the bureau said in a report.
This is the first recorded GDP decrease in China since 1992 when Beijing started to publish official statistics. Meanwhile, the country's fixed-asset investment (FAI) declined 16.1 per cent year on year to 8.41 trillion yuan (about 1.19 trillion US dollars) in the first quarter of 2020.
NBS data showed that the fall narrowed by 8.4 per cent points comparing with the decrease in the first two months.Private investment, too, decreased 18.8 per cent to 4.78 trillion yuan during the period, and investment in high-tech industries dropped 12.1 per cent in the first quarter.
Similarly, China's per capita disposable income also saw a steep decline i.e. at 8,561 yuan (about 1,211 US dollars) in the first quarter, up 0.8 percent year on year in nominal terms.
