Wuxi sees resilient economic growth in H1

An aerial view of Wuxi. [Photo/WeChat account: wuxifabu2013]

Wuxi in East China's Jiangsu province saw its GDP grow 1.6 percent year-on-year in the first half of 2022, hitting 671.475 billion yuan ($99.29 billion), according to local statistics authorities.

The added value of the city's primary, secondary and tertiary industries respectively totaled 4.961 billion yuan, 322.186 billion yuan, and 344.328 billion yuan in the first six months, up 3.1 percent, 1.7 percent, and 1.4 percent.

In the first half of this year, Wuxi's economy has faced enormous pressure due to several waves of COVID-19, but as the pandemic becomes contained and local authorities have taken steps to restore economic and social normality, Wuxi's economy has gradually revived, said an official from the Wuxi bureau of statistics.

The pandemic shone a spotlight on the resilience of high-tech industries. The added value of the high-tech manufacturing and equipment manufacturing industries grew by 8 percent and 5.3 percent yearly respectively while that of the information transmission and information technology service industries surged 14.7 percent year-on-year.

A bustling commercial street in Wuxi. [Photo/WeChat account: news-wuxixinwen]

Other statistics also demonstrated Wuxi's economic recovery. The city's foreign trade achieved a record high in the Jan-June period, reaching 353.14 billion yuan and registering a year-on-year increase of 18.5 percent.

Imports climbed 11.7 percent year-on-year to $54.885 billion, while exports jumped 19.4 percent year-on-year to $35.395 billion.

The per capita disposable income of Wuxi residents totaled 33,694 yuan during the same period, a 4.5 percent year-on-year increase, while that of urban and rural residents of the city reached 37,621 yuan and 21,392 yuan respectively, year-on-year increases of 4 percent and 5.5 percent.