China has released its macro economic data for the first half of this year. Some provinces and municipalities recorded consistently robust economic growth. But the report also reveals big differences in economic growth between China's western and eastern regions. CCTV’s Zhong Shi joins me now with more details.

Q1. China's total Gross Domestic Product grew 6.7% year on year in the first six months of this year. If we break that down by province, where do we see the greatest growth?

A1. 25 provinces have released their half year GDP growth figures. Some provinces and municipalities performed better than others. Chongqing and Tibet continue to top the list. Both recorded 10.6% percent GDP growth in the first half of this year. Around 4 percentage points higher than the national average. Chongqing’s growth is particularly remarkable. It has had the fastest GDP growth for ten consecutive quarters. Well-developed regions such as Beijing and Shanghai actually rank at the bottom on the list, along with Hebei and Yunnan provinces. There is a visible disparity between growth in the eastern, more developed regions and growth in poorer western regions. Experts point out that while eastern regions have a larger GDP volume, they are also undergoing an economic transformation, that is resulting in slower overall economic growth. Eastern regions are transitioning away from manufacturing and towards a more service-based economy.

Q2. Let’s talk about the top performers. Chongqing has always been an industrial city. And it has recorded the greatest GDP growth for ten quarters in a row now. What’s driving that growth?

A2. Officials in Chongqing say that continuing industrial investment has played a key role in the city’s growth. In fact, for the first half of this year, industrial investment grew by 10%. Growth in industrial profits grew by 23-and-a-half% percent. Chongqing's key industries are in the automobile and electronic information sectors. Let me also mention Guizhou, which is No. 3 on the GDP growth list. New investments really powered that growth. Guizhou has increasingly directed investments into big data and tourism. Investment in big data-related sectors are up almost 40%. Investment in tourism-related sectors, is up more than 40%. Guizhou's ecological and environmental protection industries recorded 80%percent growth.