East China's Jiangsu province witnessed a fairly fast economic growth in the first three months of this year, with its gross domestic product reaching about 295.6 billion yuan (about 35.6 billion US dollars), up 14.6 percent year on year.

That growth rate in first quarter was one percentage point higher than the same period of 2003, according to the latest figures of the Jiangsu Provincial Bureau of Statistics.

A bureau spokesman said that they remain optimistic towards a bullish trend of economic expansion in future given its growth rate, economic structure, quality and revenue. In the first three months, Jiangsu continued its good momentum of rapid growth in itsindustrial output, with the industrial added value totaling 138.5 billion yuan (about 16.7 billion US dollars), a year-on-year increase of 25.9 percent.

Strong investment continued to fuel local economy in Jiangsu, which accounts for about one tenth of China's total economy, over the first three months.

The province's total investment in fixed assets amounted to more than 142.3 billion yuan (some 17.1 billion US dollars), up 63.8 percent year on year. Besides foreign investment's year-on-year rise of 70.8 percent, private investment had picked up their strength and constituted about half of the province's total investment, a rise of 82.4 percent over the same period last year.

Investors continued to show their interests in Jiangsu's industrial sectors in the first quarter, with investment in energy and raw materials both posting marked increases, noted the bureau.

Source: Xinhua