Zhoushan's GDP grows 12.6% in first three quarters

Zhoushan in East China's Zhejiang province reported a 12.6 percent year-on-year increase in GDP in the first three quarters of this year, local media reported on Oct 24.

This puts the city at first place among cities in Zhejiang with a growth rate 10.3 percentage points higher than the provincial average.

The added value of industries above designated size registered a 69.5 percent increase year-on-year in the Jan-Sept period, 66.5 percentage points higher than the provincial average, also beating out all other cities in the province.

The petrochemical, shipbuilding, and repair industries were still the main drivers behind the rapid economic growth of Zhoushan, while the added value of the cement and cement product industries turning positive.

The output of the city's fishing industry was 1.05 million metric tons, a year-on-year increase of 2.1 percent, including 401,000 tons of output from distant-water fishing.

Foreign trade increased 41.4 percent year-on-year to 124.69 billion yuan ($18.65 billion). Exports grew 30.1 percent year-on-year to 42.81 billion yuan while imports grew 48 percent year-on-year to 81.88 billion yuan.

These three figures were 32.8, 22.6, and 35.9 percentage points higher than provincial averages, respectively.

The wholesale industry in Zhoushan also saw a rapid recovery as total sales increased 5 percent year-on-year. Notably, sales of metal materials and oil products registered 32.1 percent and 20.9 percent year-on-year increases.

In the first eight months, the city's science and technology service industry generated 2.17 billion yuan in revenue and its high-tech service industry generated 1.67 billion yuan in revenue, year-on-year increases of 8.5 percent and 1.9 percent.

The China (Zhejiang) Pilot Free Trade Zone (FTZ) also remained stable in the first nine months.

A total of 4,977 companies registered in the FTZ, accounting for 74.9 percent of newly registered companies in Zhoushan. This included 47 foreign invested companies.

Meanwhile, cargo throughput of ports in the Zhejiang FTZ reached 183.89 million tons, a year-on-year increase of 17.9 percent and accounting for 42.3 percent of all cargo throughput in Zhoushan.

As of the end of September, 71 licensed financial institutions had been operating in the Zhejiang FTZ, generating 3.22 billion yuan in revenue, a year-on-year increase of 12.2 percent.