China Focus: China's GDP growth slows to 7.7 pct

BEIJING, April 15 (Xinhua) -- China's gross domestic product (GDP) growth unexpectedly slowed to 7.7 percent in the first quarter of 2013, down from 7.9 percent during the final quarter of 2012, data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showed on Monday.

The rate was weaker than most market forecasts, but still stayed above the 7.5-percent full-year target for 2013 set by the government last month.

According to preliminary statistics, the GDP totaled 11.89 trillion yuan (1.9 trillion U.S. dollars) in the first three months.

"The fall-back in growth was mainly caused by complex international circumstances and the government's self-initiated microeconomic control," said NBS spokesman Shen Laiyun at a press conference in Beijing. He noted that growth rates between 7.4 percent and 7.9 percent were normal.

Increases in urban new jobs and the number of new migrant workers in the first quarter showed a favorable situation of employment, which is a key index for the health of an economy, Sheng said.

The GDP data, the first of its kind after the new government took office in March, have attracted wide market attention. Chinese Premier Li Keqiang said last week that China's economic operation has been generally stable so far this year.

While effectively dealing with short-term issues and keeping reasonable growth, the government should focus more on promoting the transformation of the economy's growth pattern, the premier said.

China's full-year annual growth in 2012 eased to 7.8 percent, its weakest since 1999, due to volatile external markets and the government's domestic tightening to tame property prices and inflation.

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