A leading Chinese investment bank has upgraded its 2017 GDP forecast for the country from 6.7 percent to 6.8 percent.
The predicted uptick was attributed to an improvement in China’s investment sector and export volume, according to a report published by China International Capital Corporation (CICC) on Monday.
China’s fixed-asset investment grew 3.2 percent in 2016, reaching 36.5219 trillion yuan (5.3 trillion US dollars). The growth rate is 0.1 percent higher than January to November’s average growth rate.
Consumption contributed 64.6 percent of the total economic growth in 2016, according to China's National Development and Reform Commission. /CFP Photo
China’s export volume in January was 1.2657 trillion yuan (184.2 billion US dollars), a 15.9 percent increase from a year ago. China’s export volume in December was 1.43 trillion yuan (208.29 billion US dollars), a 10.2 percent increase from that of November.
CICC added that other factors contributed to the upgrade: recent data shows the performance of infrastructure and real estate investment is stronger than previous predictions, and overseas demand is also bouncing back faster and stronger than previously forecast.
Real estate investment grew 6.9 percent in 2016 in comparison to 2015, despite cooling measures imposed by the Chinese government at the end of 2016.
The financial firm also predicts that the investment sector will continue to accelerate, consumption will remain strong, and the growth rate of exports will remain on track.
CICC is China’s first joint venture investment bank. The report was led by the financial firm’s chief economist Liang Hong.
