Guangdong released economic data for January to April, showing that despite significant external pressures such as U.S. tariffs, the province's economy remained generally stable. The industrial added value rose by 3.4% year-on-year, with manufacturing growing by 4.1%.
Among key products, the output of new energy vehicles, industrial robots, and civilian drones surged by 22.9%, 36.4%, and 48.6%, respectively, compared to the same period last year.
In major industries, value added in the computer, communications, and other electronic equipment manufacturing sectors increased by 7.1% year-on-year, a 0.5 percentage point improvement over the first quarter. The electrical machinery and equipment sector grew by 7.7%, automotive manufacturing by 7.8%, petroleum, coal, and other fuel processing by 7.1%, and general equipment manufacturing by 10.0%.
In the first quarter, the province's large-scale service industries generated 1.39 trillion yuan in revenue, a year-on-year increase of 7.6%. Warehousing and postal services grew by 9.8%; information transmission, software, and IT services by 9.0%; leasing and business services by 8.2%; and the culture, sports, and entertainment sector by 8.0%.
Transportation activity remained robust in April. Freight volume and freight turnover grew by 2.8% and 4.4%, respectively. Passenger volume and passenger turnover increased by 7.1% and 10.4%. Port cargo throughput was up 6.0%.
Guangdong's consumer market remains active. Retail sales of consumer goods grew by 3.0% year-on-year in the first four months, with growth accelerating by 0.5 percentage points from the first quarter. Retail sales of communication devices, home appliances and audiovisual equipment, cultural and office supplies, furniture, and building and decoration materials increased by 19.5%, 44.0%, 46.8%, 60.6%, and 29.2%, respectively.
It is worth noting that online retail sales by designated large enterprises rose by 20.0% year-on-year, with April alone posting a 31.9% increase, marking the second consecutive month above 30%.
Fixed-asset investment in the province fell by 8.4% year-on-year. However, infrastructure investment grew by 4.5%, accelerating by 0.6 percentage points from the first quarter. Industrial investment accounted for 37.6% of the total, with investment in automotive manufacturing and metal products up by 20.8% and 6.5%, respectively.
Guangdong's Consumer Price Index (CPI) fell by 0.4% year-on-year in April.
Reporter | Dai Bosi
Photo | Nanfang Plus
Editor | Hu Nan, James, Shen He
