Ningbo's GDP in the first half of 2019 reached 541.72 billion yuan ($78.8 billion), up 6.5 percent year-on-year, according to the city's municipal bureau of statistics on July 24.

Facing a complicated external environment and the pressure of an economic downturn, Ningbo has been upholding its new development strategy and striving for high-quality development. Consequently, the city maintained a generally stable and progressive economy this year, said an official.

Ningbo has seen results from its innovation-driven development in the first six months of 2019. During the period, industrial enterprises above designated size - defined as state-owned and non-state-owned industrial companies with annual revenue of over 20 million yuan – invested 14.43 billion yuan in the research and development sector, a year-on-year increase of 14.8 percent. The value of new products from these companies, accounting for 55.5 percent of the total industrial output value, reached 277.23 billion yuan, up 7.5 percent from the same period last year.

In the first half of 2019, the foreign trade value of Ningbo rose 7.4 percent to 432.72 billion yuan. Its export volume reached 277.88 billion yuan, accounting for 3.49 percent of the country's total, up 0.06 percentage points from the same period last year.

The service industry remained stable from January to June. The value added of the industry increased by 7.8 percent year-on-year, accounting for 47.2 percent of the city's GDP, 1.4 percentage points higher than the first half of 2018. The Ningbo-Zhoushan Port's cargo throughput maintained its top position globally, while the container throughput of the port ranked third globally.

The consumer market grew steadily in the first half. The total retail sales of consumer goods reached 201.23 billion yuan, up 8.1 percent year-on-year.

Average incomes saw a steady increase as well. The disposable income per capita of local residents hit 31,173 yuan, a year-on-year growth of 9.3 percent.