In recent days, reporters learned from the Municipal Development and Reform Commission and the Municipal Bureau of Statistics that in the first quarter, the total GDP of Lishui city reached 47.23 billion yuan. Calculated at constant prices, this represents a 7.3% year-on-year growth, ranking fourth in the province. This growth outperforms both the national average (5.3%) and the provincial average (6.1%), surpassing expectations and maintaining a positive momentum, which has been ongoing since last year, demonstrating a strong start to the year.

Throughout this year, Lishui city has been deeply implementing the important directives from General Secretary Xi Jinping’s visit to Zhejiang, focusing on the primary task of high-quality development. Lishui has adhered to the unified principles of “stability, progress, and establishment”, advancing three “Number One Development Projects” and ten major projects in a holistic manner. By precisely addressing challenges and bottlenecks, the city has vigorously promoted economic growth. The overall economic performance of the city is stable and promising, laying a solid foundation for achieving the annual goals.

Industry serves as the backbone of the economy. In the first quarter, the added value of industrial enterprises above designated size increased by 10.5% year-on-year, marking a 2.6 percentage point acceleration compared to the previous year, with a growth rate of 9.5% in March. Classified it by category, mining increased by 9.5%, manufacturing by 10.9%, and the production and supply of electricity, heat, gas, and water increased by 7.2%.

From the perspective of emerging industries, the value added of core industries in the digital economy, manufacturing, equipment manufacturing, strategic emerging industries, and high-tech industries grew by 24.7%, 19.3%, 10.8%, and 9.7% respectively. The value added of privately-owned enterprises in industrial enterprises above designated size increased by 10.8%, driving a 9.4 percentage point growth in the value added of large-scale industries.

The service industry serves as a crucial pillar for the economic development of Lishui City. In the first quarter, the city witnessed a sustained recovery in the service sector. The development of service industry enterprises accelerated, with a 33.4% increase in revenue for other for-profit service enterprises in January and February, ranking first in the province. Revenue for information service enterprises above designated size increased by 25.3%, ranking third province-wide.

Retail and catering industries showed rapid growth, with increases of 14.9%, 14.1%, 15.1%, and 11.8% respectively, ranking fifth, fourth, second, and third in the province. The financial industry exhibited positive development, with net interest income and net income from fees and commissions growing by 8.1%, ranking first in the province.

Effective investment maintained steady growth. In the first quarter, fixed asset investment in Lishui city increased by 8.0% year-on-year. Looking at the provincial “Trillion RMB Investment on a Thousand Projects” initiative, 78 projects saw investments totaling 7.72 billion yuan, with a completion rate of 27.5% and a groundbreaking rate of 68.2%. In terms of investment structure, investment in high-tech industries, industrial investment, construction and installation engineering investment, and manufacturing investment all grew faster than the overall investment growth rate, with increases of 34.1%, 25.0%, 12.2%, and 19.2% respectively, ranking second, third, fourth, and fourth in the province.

Consumer demand continues to be unleashed. In the first quarter, the total retail sales of consumer goods in Lishui city reached 23.41 billion yuan, representing an 8.3% year-on-year increase. Breaking down by consumption patterns, catering revenue surged by 33.7%, while retail sales of goods increased by 13.8%. Online consumption demand remained robust, with the retail sales of goods achieved by designated large-scale wholesale and retail units via the internet increasing by 37.8% year-on-year, surpassing the growth rate of all designated large-scale units’ retail sales by 22.1 percentage points. Compared to the same period last year, there was a 34.3% year-on-year increase in retail sales of new energy vehicles, constituting 21.4% of the total retail sales of automotive goods by designated large-scale units, marking a 5.8 percentage point rise.

Moreover, Lishui city also demonstrated highlights such as stable agricultural production and a promising export momentum. Agriculture, forestry, animal husbandry, fisheries, and related activities grew by 2.4%, 0.3%, 13.7%, 5.2%, and 4.7% respectively, with animal husbandry being the main driver. In terms of exports, there was a rebound in exports to the United States and the European Union, increasing by 51.8% and 27.1% respectively. General machinery equipment, valves, and electromechanical products increased by 61%, 58.5%, and 23.3% respectively.

In the next phase, Lishui city will continue to adhere to the guidance of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, focusing on the main line of the “dual fives, dual tens, dual hundreds, and dual thousands” actions. Efforts will be concentrated on advancing industrial cultivation, project construction, attracting large investments, and enhancing strengths to achieve new breakthroughs. Accelerating the cultivation of new quality productive forces, continuously enhancing economic vitality, and promoting sustainable and effective improvements in both quantitative and qualitative economic growth will be prioritized.