A view of the Lujiazui area in Shanghai Photo: VCG

　　The fundamentals of economic operation remain unchanged, an official with the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said on Wednesday, responding to questions about the second-quarter growth slowdown and the outlook for the remainder of the year.

　　Overall, there are solid conditions and support for achieving the main annual targets, especially the economic growth target, Mao Shengyong, a deputy commissioner of the NBS, said at a press conference.

　　China"s GDP expanded by 4.7 percent year-on-year to 69.57 trillion yuan ($10.28 trillion) in the first half of 2026. In the second quarter alone, the economy expanded by 4.3 percent compared with the same period last year, easing from the 5.0 percent growth recorded in the first quarter, NBS data showed.

　　"We should view and analyze the second quarter growth fluctuation comprehensively and objectively," Mao said, noting that the slowdown was due to some short‑term factors and external influences.

　　The petrochemical‑related industries were affected by external factors while coal production was affected by domestic short‑term factors. "Other industries remained normal. The basic picture of stable, and the shift toward new and high‑quality economic performance has not changed," Mao said.

　　Mao noted that in terms of nominal growth, the second quarter performed better than the first, with a larger increment. "Second quarter"s increment was not only larger than the first quarter"s but also more than 700 billion yuan larger than the increment in the same period last year —from a nominal perspective. "