Shenzhen's first quarter (Q1) GDP grew by 2% YoY to RMB 706.461 billion, according to the data released by the Shenzhen Statistics Bureau on April 27 based on Guangdong's provincial GDP accounting results.
In Q1, the environment at home and abroad was more complex and uncertain, with COVID-19 resurgences in some provinces and municipalities, including Shenzhen. Despite the combined pressure of epidemic containment, support for Hong Kong's counter-epidemic efforts, and ensuring the city's stability, Shenzhen has managed to make a good start this year, achieving outstanding results in both epidemic prevention and control and economic development.
Keeping the Economic Fundamentals Stable and Resilient
Data showed that by industry, the primary industry's added value dropped by 3.8% YoY to RMB 576 million. The secondary and tertiary industries went up by 2.3% and 1.9% YoY to RMB 237.457 billion and RMB 468.428 billion, respectively.
The added value of industries above designated size increased by 2.3% in Q1, with the mining industry and the manufacturing industry up by 16.2% and 2.0% YoY, respectively. By major industry category, the oil and gas extraction industry's added value rose by 16.2% YoY, and the special-purpose equipment manufacturing, automobile manufacturing, and tobacco went up by 11.9%, 62.0%, and 29.9% YoY, respectively. The sales revenue of 13 leading industrial enterprises expanded by 33.4% YoY, with top players acting as the ballast for growth.
The city's fixed-asset investment reported a YoY increase of 4.9%. By industry, industrial investment grew by 46.3% YoY. Specifically, manufacturing investment was up by 52.9%, information transmission, software and IT services up 40.5%, healthcare & social work up 84.0%, and production and supply of electricity, heat, gas and water up 33.6%.
The substantial increase in industrial and manufacturing investment and the implementation of significant projects, especially industrial projects, underpin industrial development in Shenzhen's future economic growth, experts said.
In Q1, Shenzhen's added value of enterprises above designated size from small and micro size, and "specialized, refined, distinctive and innovative" enterprises, saw notable growth, with the former expanding by 25.3% and the latter up 13.1%, which demonstrated the big potential and sustainability of Shenzhen's economic growth.
Shenzhen has shown its strong economic vitality since late March. In terms of electricity consumption, the city's total electricity consumption on March 21 rose by 7.0% YoY. In particular, the power consumption in the industrial sector, financial sector, and information transmission, software and IT service sector increased by 19.9%, 28.9% and 14.4% YoY, respectively. In terms of foreign trade, the current daily container throughput of the Port of Shenzhen has exceeded the average of last year.
Emerging Industries Injecting New Impetus into the Economy
Shenzhen's seven strategic emerging industries (20 industry clusters) generated a total of RMB 277.628 billion in added value in Q1, accounting for 39.3% of GDP. The growth was 4.6%, 2.6 percentage points higher than the GDP growth for the period. Among the industry clusters, seven posted a two-digit growth, including intelligent and connected vehicles (ICV) at 36.7%, high-end medical equipment at 20.6%, marine economy at 20.5%, industrial machines at 15.1%, laser and additive manufacturing at 15.0%, new materials at 14.7%, and intelligent sensors at 10.5%.
The production of high-tech products showed good momentum. Outputs of new energy vehicles (NEVs), charging stations, 5G smartphones, computers & systems for industrial control, and medical devices & equipment grew by 195.4%, 150.3%, 51.3%, 29.2%, and 20.7%, respectively.
Experts hold that the growth momentum of strategic emerging industries and the high-tech sectors suggests that the city's industrial structure is continuously improved to give economic growth strong resilience and high possibilities, and this is a structural guarantee for high-quality development.
Eye-catching Performance of Online Retail
The city's total retail sales of consumer goods recorded RMB 210.734 billion in Q1. By consumption category, retail sales of goods increased by 0.5%, revealing big pressure on offline close-contact consumption sectors. Basic necessities registered good sales performance. The retail sales of grain, oil and foods, and beverage by enterprises above designated size grew by 17.7% and 10.7%, respectively.
Sales of upgraded consumer goods maintained fast growth. Specifically, the retail sales of gold, silver and jewelry, and communication equipment by enterprises above designated size increased by 18.6% and 31.5% respectively. Another consumption highlight in Q1 was NEVs. The number of NEVs sold reached 32,000, up 36.9% YoY, accounting for 58.5% of the total of new vehicles sold, with the share up by 21.8 percentage points YoY.
The performance of online retail sales was eye-catching. The retail sales of goods realized by enterprises above designated size through the Internet went up by 15.0%, accounting for 14.3% of the total retail sales of consumer goods.
Government Expenditures Being Weighted Toward People's Wellbeing
The city's fiscal spending was RMB 124.639 billion in Q1, a YoY increase of 10.9%. Spending in the nine major areas concerning people's livelihood increased by 8.2%, accounting for 68.1% of total spending. The spending on healthcare and housing security rose by 19.1% and 16.0% respectively.
Prices posted modest increases in Q1. The city's consumer price index (CPI) went by 2.1% YoY. The YoY price increase of food, beverage, tobacco & liquor was 1.6%, clothing 2.0%, housing 0.7%, and daily necessities and life services 1.7%.
Financial institutions' capabilities in serving the real economy were strengthened. By the end of March, the city's deposit balances in RMB and foreign currencies in domestic and foreign financial institutions totaled RMB 11,306.395 billion, up 9.2% YoY; loan balance in RMB and foreign currencies totaled RMB 7,972.075 billion, up 11.2% YoY. The growth of loan balance outpaced deposit balance, benefiting the real economy.
(Source: Shenzhen Special Zone Daily)