Mainland China’s gross domestic product was 6.7 percent bigger in the third quarter of this year than a year earlier, growing at the same rate as in the preceding quarter, Xinhua reports.

The Chinese government-run news agency, citing data from the National Bureau of Statistics, says GDP in the first three quarters of this year amounted to nearly 53 trillion yuan (US$7.87 trillion), 6.7 percent more than in the corresponding period last year.

The report quotes bureau spokesman Sheng Laiyun as saying the economy grew at a steady rate because of greater demand, structural reforms on the supply side, positive sentiment and faster adoption of new drivers of growth.