China revises 2008 growth up to 9.6%

China on Friday revised up its 2008 growth rate to 9.6 per cent, taking it well above the originally reported 9.0 per cent after calculating that the service sector had been more productive than previously thought.

China on Friday revised up its 2008 growth rate to 9.6 per cent, taking it well above the originally reported 9.0 per cent after calculating that the service sector had been more productive than previously thought.

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The upward revision underscored that China was well on track to surpass Japan as the world's second-largest economy in 2010.

China may also eventually revise up its 7.7 per cent year-on-year growth rate reported for the first three quarters of 2009, though changes would be limited, Peng Zhilong of the National Bureau of Statistics said.

The hidden strength found in the services sector was a modicum of good news for policymakers in China and abroad, who have said that developing the country's non-tradeable sector is a key ingredient in rebalancing the global economy.