Business Briefs

Slow But Steady Chinas GDP grew 6.7 percent year on year in the first quarter of 2016 to reach 15.9 trillion yuan （$2.4 trillion）， according to the National Bureau of Statistics （NBS）. The growth further slowed from the previous quarters 6.8 percent， which was already the lowest quarterly rate since the global financial crisis. The NBS also published data on major economic indicators， including retail sales and investment in property. Chinas retail sales of consumer goods increased 10.3 percent. The first quarter reading was 0.4 percentage points lower than last years. In March， retail sales were up 10.5 percent year on year， faster than the growth rate in the first two months this year. Investment in the property sector rose 6.2 percent year on year in the first quarter of 2016. The expansion continued to pick up following a 3-percent increase in the JanuaryFebruary period and 1-percent growth in 2015.

Outbound investment Up Chinese companies continued to invest big in the overseas market in the first quarter of this year， new official data show. Chinas non-financial outbound direct investment jumped 55.4 percent from a year ago to 261.74 billion yuan（$40.34 billion） in the first quarter， the Ministry of Commerce said. Nearly $5.4 billion was invested in manufacturing in the first quarter， up 125.9 percent， almost half of the investment channeled to equipment manufacturing. Chinese firms spent $16.56 billion on overseas acquisitions in 15 industries in 36 countries and regions.

More Bank Cards The number of bank cards issued by Chinas financial institutions reached 5.44 billion at the end of 2015， putting average per-capita bank card ownership at 3.99， according to central bank data. Debit card issuance reached 5.1 billion and credit cards totaled 432 million， a report released by the Peoples Bank of China said. As of the end of 2015， financial institutions had extended 7.08 trillion yuan （$1.1 trillion） in credit to credit card owners， a 26.4-percent increase year on year. Credit card loans more than six months overdue accounted for 1.23 percent of the outstanding credit loans， down 0.3 percentage points from the ratio a year earlier， the central bank said.

rural E-commerce Boom Farm produce sales via Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba topped 69.6 billion yuan （$10.7 billion） in 2015， up 44 percent year on year， according to a report by AliResearch， the research arm of the Alibaba Group. The report， released at the First China Farm Produce E-commerce Summit in Mile， Yunnan Province， said Alibabas e-commerce platforms have registered more than 900，000 farm produce sellers. More than 100，000 of them are from Guangdong Province， with the second and third highest concentrations in the eastern provinces of Zhejiang and Jiangsu respectively. In addition to selling farm produce， farmers also bought farming materials worth 5 billion yuan （$771.3 million） via Alibabas platforms last year， up 83.2 percent year on year.

Spurt in new Firms The number of new firms continues to increase in China. About 1 million new companies were registered in the first quarter of 2016， up 25.9 percent year on year， according to the State Administration for Industry and Commerce. The number of newly registered firms in tertiary industries rose 27.4 percent to 862，000， comprising over 80 percent of new registrations. As the housing market warmed slightly in major cities， the property sector saw 23，000 new firms in the first quarter. China lifted restrictions on minimum registered capital， payment deadlines and down payment ratios and cash ratios of registered capital in early 2014 to encourage startups.

Social Security relief China will reduce the contributions individuals and enterprises have to make to the social security funds， according to a government meeting. The required contribution rates to the pension insurance， unemployment insurance and housing provident funds will be lowered in a two-year period starting from May 1， said a statement issued after a State Council meeting. The new policy aims to relieve corporate burden and increase workerscash income. The government estimated companies across the country can save over 100 billion yuan （$15.48 billion） each year.