Recently released local economic data from Chinese provinces show that the country's national economy got off to a generally stable start in the first quarter amid the COVID-19 resurgence. The GDP of 11 provincial-level economies exceeded 1 trillion yuan (about $150 billion), three more provinces than in the same period in 2021.

Guangdong, Jiangsu, and Shandong provinces ranked the top three, with GDP in the first quarter reaching 2.8 trillion yuan, 2.8 trillion yuan, and 2 trillion yuan, respectively. The gap between Jiangsu and Guangdong has narrowed from 138.4 billion yuan in the same period last year to 64 billion yuan this year. Data showed that Guangdong's GDP grew by 3.3% year-on-year in the first quarter, 1.3 percentage points lower than Jiangsu's 4.6% growth rate.

Shanghai, which has been hit hard by a wave of COVID-19 outbreaks since March, generated GDP of about 1 trillion yuan in the first quarter, ranking 11th nationwide; Jilin's GDP fell by 7.9% year-on-year, making it the only province with negative growth.

According to preliminary estimates, GDP in the first quarter reached 27.02 trillion yuan, up by 4.8% year-on-year at constant prices or 1.3% compared with the fourth quarter of 2021. In terms of growth rate, 23 provinces were higher than the national average.

In a press conference, Fu Linghui, director-general of the Department of Comprehensive Statistics of the National Bureau of Statistics, said that the national economy continued the momentum of recovery in the first quarter, performing within a reasonable range. 

Since March, the global situation has become more complex, and the impact of the domestic epidemic continues, Fu said, noting that, however, the fundamentals of China's long-term positive economic growth have not changed.

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