The skyline of Ningbo, Zhejiang province. [Photo/WeChat account: nbfb0574]

Ningbo's gross domestic product for the first quarter of this year soared to 399.22 billion yuan ($55.08 billion), marking a 5.6 percent year-on-year increase. This surpassed the growth rate registered in 2023 by 0.1 percentage points, as announced by local statistical authorities on April 22.

The added value of Ningbo's primary, secondary, and tertiary industries reached 5.65 billion yuan, 178.31 billion yuan, and 215.26 billion yuan, representing respective year-on-year increases of 3.5 percent, 6.4 percent, and 4.9 percent.

During the three-month period, the city's agriculture, forestry, animal husbandry, and fishery industries rose by 3.6 percent to 6.09 billion yuan.

The upswing was also evident in the industry and service sectors. The added value of industrial enterprises above designated size in Ningbo expanded by 7.4 percent, outperforming the growth rate from the first quarter of 2023 and the entire year by 3.4 percentage points and 0.8 percentage points, respectively. Meanwhile, its service sector demonstrated a 4.9 percent year-on-year increase in added value.

Additionally, the city's investment in fixed assets and foreign trade showed stable growth, with the former registering a 6.8 percent increase, while the latter climbed by 8.6 percent to reach 321.89 billion yuan.

Ningbo experienced a notable recovery in consumption during the same period. The city's retail sales of social consumption goods during this period amounted to 124.19 billion yuan, up by 4.5 percent year-on-year.

The city's fiscal revenue edged up by 0.6 percent to 119.11 billion yuan.

Income levels also improved, with the city's overall per capita disposable income in the first quarter increasing by 5.8 percent to 23,919 yuan in real terms after adjusting for price factors.