China’s economy grew by around 7 pct in 2015, services made up half of GDP – Premier

The premier also said that employment had expanded more than expected with 900 million people making up the country’s total workforce, including 150 million skilled professionals.

Consumption contributed nearly 60 percent of growth, Li said, at the opening ceremony for the China-backed Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) in Beijing.

China’s fourth-quarter and full-year 2015 GDP figures are expected to be released on Jan. 19.

Analysts polled by Reuters have forecast 2015 growth cooled to 6.9 percent, down from 7.3 percent in 2014 and the slowest pace in a quarter of a century.