1st LD: China's economy stabilizes despite headwinds

China's economy grew slightly faster than expectations in the second quarter of 2016, holding steady from the first quarter and fueling hopes that the economy has entered a steady but slower period of development.

The country's GDP grew 6.7 percent year on year in the second quarter, according to data released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) on Friday.

The figure, though the lowest quarterly rate since the global financial crisis, remained within the government's targeted range of between 6.5 and 7 percent for 2016.

On a quarterly basis, the economy increased 1.8 percent from the first quarter.

GDP expanded 6.7 percent year on year in the first half of 2016 to reach 34.06 trillion yuan (5.08 trillion U.S. dollars).

NBS spokesperson Sheng Laiyun said China's economic stabilization is set to continue, with major indicators operating in a reasonable zone while supply-side structural reform and economic restructuring continue to advance.

Industrial output expanded 6.2 percent year on year in June, accelerating from a 6-percent increase in May. Retail sales rose 10.6 percent, a faster expansion from May's 10-percent growth. However, growth of fixed-asset investment slowed further to 9 percent for the January-June period.

The service sector expanded 7.5 percent year on year in the first half, outpacing a 3.1-percent increase in primary industry and 6.1 percent in secondary industry. It accounted for 54.1 percent of the overall economy, up 1.8 percentage points from a year earlier, Sheng said. Endi